Up All Night
by Safron Angel
Summary: Sure, Neji’s cute, but he’s also obnoxious and Tenten's mom thinks that Neji is the perfect guy for Tenten. Meanwhile, Sakura's world came crumbling down when she finds out who Sasuke is...Will thier love survive this barrier? Pairings: NejiTen, SasuSaku
1. Prologue

**Up All Night**

_Summary: AU. Characters are OOC. Sure, Neji's cute, but he's also obnoxious! So try telling that to Tenten's mom. She thinks that Neji is the perfect guy for Tenten. So when Neji surprised Tenten by asking her to the prom, she had to say yes for her sick mom whom she didn't want to let down, even if it meant spending the most romantic night of her life with him. Neji. The guy she can't stand. On the other hand, Sakura isn't interested in love. Her parents are divorced and Sakura is pretty down on couplehood. The last thing on her mind is jumping into a relationship, that is, until Sasuke comes along. Will these 2 girls have thier perfect prom night? Pairings: Neji/Tenten, Sasuke/Sakura.  
_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto!_

_Rated: PG_

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Prologue

_ The Summer before Eigth Grade_

Tenten rubbed her hands against the fabric of her favorite white dress and hoped that Neji wouldn't notice how sweaty her palms were. This was the most significant night of her thirteen years on the planet and she wanted everything to be perfect.

So far, so good, Tenten thought. Mr Hyuga had dropped them off in the parking lot of the Star restaurant and he hadn't said anything embarrassing about how cute they looked all dressed up or commented on how they were all grown up.

"Ready to go inside?" Neji asked, pulling the door of the restaurant.

"Yeah." Tenten wished she had said something clever, but tonight she felt completely tongue-tied.

Usually she felt so comfortable around Neji that he had a hard time shutting her up, but tonight was different. Tonight they were on a date. Neji had asked and Tenten had accepted. So even though they had been buddies forever, even though they had practically grown up together because their moms were best friends, Tenten knew that something had changed between them. And that something was the fact that friends didn't kiss but people on dates did. And for a couple of weeks now, all Tenten could think about was what it would be like to kiss Hyuga Neji. Her best friend. He must have been feeling the same way since he was the one who asked her out – on a real date.

Her real first date and so far it was everything she had imagined. Everything really was different tonight. Even Neji looked different. He was wearing khaki pants that she had never seen before and a white, button-down shirt that he had actually bothered to tuck in.

"We would like a table by the window," Neji told a waiter as he and Tenten walked into the restaurant. "Preferably a booth." He added.

The waiter rolled his eyes. "Do I look like a maitre d', kid? Sit wherever you want, preferably not a booth since its just two of you."

Tenten cringed. A shot of red crept up Neji's cheeks.

"Does he want a tip?" Neji asked loudly enough for the waiter to hear him. "Sue me for wanting a nice table."

"Forget him," Tenten whispered in Neji's ear. "He probably hates teenagers. Let's sit over there."

Neji smiled. "Okay."

They sat down at a table for two by the window. A large green hanging plant was right over Tenten's head and she prayed that it wouldn't fall on her as another waiter dropped two menus on their table.

The waiter returned, snapping open his order pad and removing a short pencil from behind his ear. "What will it be?"

Tenten's mouth was watering and she knew exactly what she wanted: a double cheeseburger, large fries, coleslaw and a large coke with a lemon wedge.

"I'll have a tossed salad, dressing on the side and an iced tea, please."

Neji stared at her as if there was something wrong with her,then shrugged and turned his attention to the waiter. He ordered everything Tenten had been dreaming of except that he got a milk shake instead of coke. When the waiter left, Neji asked, "You knew we were going to have dinner, so why did you eat something in the first place?"

Huh? What was he talking about? Tenten thought. "I didn't. I haven't ate anything since breakfast. Why would you think I did?"

"Why else would you order just a salad, then?" Neji replied. "And since when did you drink ice tea?"

Tenten felt herself redden. "I'm just trying to eat lighter these days, that's all." Okay, that was a total lie, but she couldn't eat like a pig in front of Neji. Not tonight anyway. Did he have to make such a big deal about what she ordered?

"So, I'm really psyched for the movie we're going to see," she told him,dying to change the subject. Neji's eyes lit up at the mention of the film. They talked excitedly and easily about their expectations of it and Tenten felt herself relax. This was more like it. This was a date.

"Yummy!" Tenten said as she saw the waiter heading towards them with their orders. "There's nothing like a crisp, green salad."

Again, Neji looked at her like she had two heads. "Usually you eat like there was no tomorrow."

Tenten felt her cheeks flame again and then she realized she was more angry than embarrassed. That comment wasn't very nice. Who was he to say anything about how much or how little she ate? _Calm down Tenten_, she told herself. Guys are not known for their sensivity.Tenten decided to let it pass – in the name of love. Besides, she did have a tendency to eat a lot.

"Here you go, kiddies," the waiter said.

Neji glared at the waiter. "We're not…"

"We are not going to need anything else,thanks!" Tenten cut in brightly. The waiter left and Tenten breathed a sigh of relief. The last thing she needed was Neji and the guy to get into a fistfight.

"Just forget it ok?" she whispered urgently to Neji. "Don't say anything rude if he comes back with more water or something."

"Why should I let him talk to us that way?" Neji demanded. "Who does he think he is? And he's not that much older than we are. He's like seventeen or something."

"Your fries are getting cold," Tenten told him with a smile. "Let's dig in ok?"

Neji nodded, grabbing the squirt bottle of ketchup. He turned it upside down over his fries and squeezed but nothing came out. He shook the bottle and tried again.

"Do you need help with that?" Tenten asked, reaching for the bottle.

"Nope." Neji shook the bottle vigorously. "I can handle it."

Then he squeezed the bottle, using what looked like all of his upper-body strength. The ketchup shot out of the bottle as if it were firing from a canon and it landed all over the white dress Tenten had so carefully chosen from her closet less than an hour ago.

"Oh no!" Tenten shrieked. "Its all over me!"

"Sorry!" Neji turned bright red as he grabbed a fistful of napkins. "Here let me help you."

But as he leaned across the table with the napkins, his sleeve caught on the straw that was sticking out of his milk shake. In a split second, the entire contents of the glass landed on her dress.

"NEJI!" she cried. "I cant believe you! You're such a …"

He froze, napkins in his hands. "Such a what?"

"Look at me! My outfit is completely ruined!" Tenten shouted.

"I said I'm sorry! Jeez! It was an accident!"

Tenten grabbed the napkins from Neji's hands and wiped furiously at her dress. This whole date was turning into a disaster. She didn't want to leave the table, much less go to a movie theatre looking like that.

She put the wet pile of napkins on the table and glared at Neji. A little while ago, she had thought he was the greatest guy in the world, but now… he didn't even look cute. Okay, he did look cute but still, this date wasn't anything like she had thought it would be.

Neji stared in horror at the mess he had created. He felt bad about what happened but the truth was it was an accident. He didn't mean it. What was he suppose to do? It wasn't as if she had broken her arm. She just had a little food on her clothes. No biggie.

"Calm down," Neji told her. "Everybody is staring at us."

In particular, Neji had spotted three guys from the eighth grade sitting at a table on the other side of the room. They were pointing at Neji and Tenten's booth and laughing hysterically.

"Hey Hyuga! You want one of us to pinch-hit your date? It doesn't look like you're doing such a great job of it yourself!" one of them called out.

Humilation. Total and utter humilation. Neji slid down in the booth, hoping to just disappear into the ground.

"Shut up!" Tenten yelledat the guys. "Nobody asked for you opinion!"

They howled. "Ooohh she is such a blast!" another called.

Could he die now or would that be too much to ask for? It wasn't like Neji could challenge them to a fight over Tenten's honor. They would kill him. Each one of them was practically twice his size.

"Why don't we get our check? I suddenly lost my appetite." Neji asked Tenten.

"Yeah, good idea." Tenten said as she looked up from the mess on her dress.

But the waiter was one step ahead of them. Before Neji could even catch his eye, he placed the check in front of him on the table. "I'll take that whenever you're ready, sir."

"I'm ready right now." Neji responded. He reached into the back of his khakis to get his wallet.

But nothing was there. Quickly he reached into his other pocket. Nothing. No wallet. No money. Just a lint ball from the dryer. Suddenly his face was like it was on fire. Neji knew exactly where his wallet was. On top of his dresser, where he had left it before he slipped into his pants.

"What's wrong?" Tenten asked.

Neji took a deep breath. "I forgot my wallet," he whispered, not wanting the waiter to hear him.

"What? You forgot it?" Tenten repeated loudly. "NEJI!"

"I…I'm sorry," he stammered. "I just…"

"I'll pay," Tenten interrupted. "Luckily I brought my baby-sitting money." She opened up her small purse and took out several bills.

Neji could hear the waiter sniggering the group of guys laughing. That was it, he just wished that he could disappear from earth forever…

"Thanks," he gulped, wishing the floor could open up and swallow him whole, together with that stupid ketchup bottle.

But there was still hope. Maybe Tenten could get home and change and they could start the whole date over again. Well, minus the part which included eating. He didn't want to give up yet. Neji had spent the last few months building up the courage to ask Tenten out on a real date, and he wanted it to be perfect. But even if it couldn't be perfect, he still wanted it to be.

"Do you still want to go to the movies? We could catch a later show." He asked.

Tenten looked into his eyes and smiled. "Yes, I would like that."

They both slid out of the booth and headed for the door. Trying to regain his gentleman status, he took Tenten's arm to help her down the stairs that led to the parking lot.

"I think I can get out most of the…" Tenten's voice suddenly broke off as she missed one of the steps.

One second she had been right next to him, her arm in his hand. The next second she was sprawled on the parking lot, holding her ankle and moaning.

"Are you ok?" Neji asked, kneeling beside her.

"It's these shoes," she explained, wincing. "I'm not used to heels."

He looked at the shoe she was now holding in her hands. It was like one of those skinny heels he saw his mom wore when she and his dad went out to dinner.

"Why are you wearing those?" he asked. "You could have just worn your sneakers, like you always do."

Tenten's eyes were filled with tears. "Well, excuse me for trying to look nice and trying to look like a grown up for a change."

Uh-oh. He had made another blunder. "

I didn't mean anything by it." He said quickly. "I just, umm.. don't understand why you're trying to act like you're twenty years old or something.

There, that was a compliment, wasn't it? He had told her he liked her just the way she was. She didn't have to do anything fancy to impress him.

Tenten stood up, hopping on her good ankle. "I guess you would have preferred it if I acted like a five-year-old and spilled ketchup all over you!" Tenten blurted out, her face red with anger.

"I said I was sorry about that. It was an accident!" he yelled back. "How many times do you want me to apologize?"

Tenten sighed, looking defeated. "I didn't mean it that way." She exclaimed. "It's just that this date isn't at all like I thought it would be…I thought you were going to make an effort.

Make an effort? He had shaved for the first time in his life this afternoon just to make an effort. If she didn't appreciate it, then it was her problem.

"Maybe we should skip the movie," Neji suggested, still hoping against hope that she would disagree with him.

Tenten scowled. "If that's your attitude, then maybe we should."

"Fine!" Neji exclaimed.

"Fine!" Tenten yelled.

Neji kicked an empty Coke can across the parking lot. "I'm going to walk home that way," he shouted.

"Good, I'm going to walk home the other way." With that, she turned and limped across the parking lot.

Neji stood, watching her go. After a few steps, she turned back and shouted, "You're an idiot Hyuga, I hate you!"

Neji frowned at her. "The feeling is mutual." He shouted back. After almost a minute, Neji had a strange sensation that he wasn't alone. He glanced toward the restaurant and saw the guys who had been making fun of him staring at him from the other side of the window.

Great! Not only he had ruined things with Tenten, but also his reputation would be damaged forever. And it was all her fault. If he never saw Tenten again, it would be too soon.

* * *

**Author's Note**: _Hello guys! I am back! Here's new story for my lovely readers. I'm going to put the other story "Then there was you" on hold for a while until I map out the whole plot. I am kinda having writer's block on that one. At the meantime, enjoy this. There will be Sasu/Saku later on.  
_


	2. Chapter 1

**Up All Night**

_Summary: AU. Characters are OOC. Sure, Neji's cute, but he's also obnoxious! So try telling that to Tenten's mom. She thinks that Neji is the perfect guy for Tenten. So when Neji surprised Tenten by asking her to the prom, she had to say yes for her sick mom whom she didn't want to let down, even if it meant spending the most romantic night of her life with him. Neji. The guy she can't stand. On the other hand, Sakura isn't interested in love. Her parents are divorced and Sakura is pretty down on couplehood. The last thing on her mind is jumping into a relationship, that is, until Sasuke comes along. Will these 2 girls have thier perfect prom night? Pairings: Neji/Tenten, Sasuke/Sakura._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto!_

_Rated: PG_

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Chapter 1

Tenten poured a tablespoon of olive oil onto the center of a large frying pan, then tilted the pan from side to side until the oil was evenly spread across the Teflon surface. Next she cracked an egg on the edge of the counter and carefully spilled its contents onto the sizzling oil. She turned up the heat and waited for her egg to be ready.

A year ago, nobody would have said that she, Tenten, could boil a pot of water, much less believe that she would wake up at dawn to perfect another breakfast item she was adding to her slowly building repertoire of dishes. Then again, a year ago, nobody would have said a lot of things about her that was now true.

For instance, nobody, and she meant nobody would have predicted that she would be going to her senior prom with Hyuga Neji. She still couldn't believe she was stuck going to the dance with that annoying collection of irksome personality traits. But there's a reason to this madness, she reminded herself.

It was the reason that lay behind most, if not all, of the innumerable changes in her life. She held back tears as she stared at the frying egg. Her mom used to be the one who got up early every morning to cook breakfast. But she hadn't been able to do that for a long time. Not since she had been diagnosed with breast cancer eighteen months ago.

Tenten's mom had suffered through a major operation and she had won a few battles against cancer. But deep down inside her heart, Tenten knew that she probably wasn't going to win this war. Making breakfast everyday wasn't much but at least she felt she was doing something to help her parents. As Tenten slid two pieces of bread into the toaster, she remembered the time in third grade when Neji and her had tried to make grilled-cheese sandwich in the toaster. It was a miracle that they hadn't set the entire kitchen on fire. Of course, that was back then, when she and Neji had been friends – it seemed like a lifetime ago.

Tenten had practically grown up with Neji. His mom and her mom were best friends and their family just lived down the block. They had spent their summers together. Neji had been her first confidant, and for a while, she thought that she was in love with him. Then again, she had also thought she was in love with Barney the dinosaur.

A date with Barney would have probably gone better than the one she and Neji had, Tenten thought as she watched the toast pop up. It had been summer after seventh grade. Neji and her had been flirting for months and then "it" happened.

He was wearing a green shirt and jeans and he showed up at the door of her house, stammered for approximately one minute and then asked if she would like to accompany him for dinner and then to the movies at the mall. By the time she had finished saying yes, he was already halfway down the block.

Tenten had stood motionless at the door for what felt like an hour, going over and over the invitation in her mind. That afternoon she had been the happiest girl in the world. T_oo bad she didn't have the wisdom to stay at home and practice putting on eye shadow the night of their so-called date, _she thought now.

Neji and Tenten never recovered after that night. They had been forced together the very next day for a family function – big mistake. Their delicate thirteen-year-old egos had been too recently stomped on by each other. They had glared at each other, made obnoxious comments under their breaths and with each passing day, they grew further and further apart. And suddenly weeks, months and then years had gone by.

Tenten was still thinking about Neji as she cracked another three eggs onto a bowl. It was almost unbelievable that Neji and her were still locked in their version of cold war, especially because they were thrown together all the time – un unfortunate by-product of their parents' longtime friendship. They had always hid their animosity from their parents but not from each other. Both Neji and her had become experts at the verbal one-two punch. Too bad her mom was so set on the idea of her going to the prom with none other than the vain, toad-spotted pig-nut himself. Probably because the first real date her mom and dad ever had was the night of their prom. Since then, her mom had been convinced that it was a night of magic and somehow, she thought that Hyuga Neji plus Tenten equaled abracadabra.

Tenten doubted it was Neji's idea to pop the big question. She was ninety percent sure that Mrs Hyuga had talked him into it. Nonetheless, Neji didn't have to agree to ask her to be his date. As much as she hated to, Tenten had to give credit for his part in making her mom's dream come true. Maybe she could try to get out of the date with Neji, she decided. She would be doing both of them a favor.

Tenten's dad walked into the kitchen just as she turned off the heat under the French toast. He was whistling but he looked tired.

"How is she?" Tenten asked.

"She's okay honey, not great, but okay." He said as he dropped a kiss on the top of her head.

"I made French toast. Mom loves my French toast." Tenten said brightly.

She picked up the plate and set her face in a grin position. She made sure that the first time her mom saw her every morning, she was smiling. Tenten wanted her mom to believe she was happy, no matter what she was feeling inside.

Tenten knocked softly on the door of her parents' room but there was no response. So she nudged the door open and stuck her head inside. Her mom lay in the middle of her bed and her eyes were closed.

"Mom…time for breakfast," she whispered.

Her eyes fluttered open. For a split second, Tenten watched the muscles of her mom's face contort with pain. Then her gaze landed on Tenten and she smiled at her.

"Good morning sweetie, how nice of you to make me such a delicious breakfast."

Tenten felt a warm glow from the praise. Now that her mom was sick, she treasured these little things she can do to make her happy.

"Do you feel up to eating something?" Tenten asked, her voice hopeful.

"For you, I would eat liver, or cow's tongue. I'll try…at least."

Tenten laughed. "As long as you manage a few bites, I would be satisfied."

"This is delicious Tenten, you are an expert chef now," her mom said as she swallowed a bite.

"Oh, come on mom, its just bread fried in egg batter!"

She didn't reply Tenten. Her mom was now staring at the food as if it were her worst energy. Tenten bit her lip, trying to hold back her tears. She knew that her mom had lost her appetite and if she took another bite, she would probably throw up. Tenten took the tray from her gently and set it on the bedside table.

"It's alright, I'll leave it here, you can have some more later."

"Thanks honey, I guess I wasn't as hungry as I thought." Tenten's mom said as she leaned back against the pillows, her eyes heavy with fatigue.

Tenten took a deep breadth and stood up. "I'll see you after school mom."

Her mom just nodded sleepily. As Tenten tiptoed out of the room, her mom called her.

"Tenten, I remembered something. As soon as up pick up your prom dress from Claire's boutique, you'll have to do a fashion show for me."

"I will, I promise."

"You and Neji are going to have a wonderful time at the prom. It means the world to me that both of you are going together." Her mom said and all signs of fatigue were gone at the thought of her daughter going to the prom with Neji.

"Yeah…it will be great." Tenten agreed.

Tenten heave out a sigh as she closed the door of the bedroom. How could she even have considered getting out of the date? It meant so much to her mom. There was no way she was going to let her down. She is going to the prom with Neji and she was going to pretend to love every minute of it…for her mom.

In her room, Tenten started to get ready for school. As she slipped into a white cotton shirt, she caught sight of herself in the full-length mirror. Her skin was pale and she had dark rings around her eyes. She couldn't help notice that she wasn't a very pretty sight.

"This is no good Tenten," she told herself.

A few strokes of the blush brush, some mascara and lip-gloss later, Tenten looked tons better. But there was still something missing from her face. A smile. As much as she appreciated the concern of her best friend Sakura, had for her, she didn't want her pity. She didn't want anyone's pity. It wouldn't help her mom and it would make her feel even worse. She started practicing different smiles in the mirror and finally settled on a more natural and casual grin that almost reached her eyes.

"Good enough, Tenten, you're ready for public." She said to her reflection in the mirror.

Her friends were not going to know how scared she was. As far as the world was concerned, she was a normal, happy, healthy teenager.

On Neji's side…

"Come on, I know you can do it baby!" Neji begged as he turned the key in the ignition of his Volkswagen for the third time, praying for some life from the engine. But there was no sound from the car's internal organ and he knew getting the engine going within the next three minutes was impossible. That was the last thing he needed. He was running way late and Mrs Crouch had informed him last week that he was going to stay after school if he was late one more time. At the age of seventeen, staying after school was a downright humilation.

Neji gazed down the block, trying to figure out his next course of action. His dad had already left for work, and his mom was in the shower. But if he walked to school, he would be twenty minutes late. And then he saw non other than Tenten racing out of her house. Her arms were loaded with books as usual. Neji sighed. Tenten was the last person he wanted to ask for a ride to school. But she was also the only person on this street to school.

_Pride or detention. Pride. Detention. _Okay, he was going to sacrifice his pride in the name of avoiding detention. It was the only sane thing to do. Neji jumped out of the car and slammed the door behind him. Swinging his backpack over one shoulder, he jogged down the block, waving his arms. When he was fifty feet from Tenten's house, she looked up from the door she was unlocking.

"You can stop waving Neji," she informed him. "I see you."

"Can I have a ride to school? My car isn't in one of her moods." He asked.

Tenten shrugged. "Get in."

That was easy, Neji thought. That wasn't the first time he had to swallow his pride and ask Tenten for a ride to school. But usually she tortured him for a couple of minutes before she grudgingly agreed to let him grace the inside of her precious car. Neji tossed his backpack into the backseat of her Honda and slid into the passenger seat.

Tenten barely seemed to notice him as she started the car and put it into gear. Her eyes were focused on the road and she seemed to be in some sort of trance.

"You're losing your touch," he commented, glancing sideways at her dark brown hair and ivory skin.

Tenten raised one eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I haven't received one insult since I got into this car." Neji pointed out. "We have been together for three minutes and you've neither called me a rotting log nor commented on my poor taste in girls."

"Maybe I've matured," she said. "Maybe I have realized that it is a waste of time to expend even an iota of mental energy sparring with you."

"I've got another theory. I think you're harboring a hidden, burning passion for me. It's written all over your face."

Now that got Tenten's attention. She took her eyes off the road just long enough to glare at him.

"I might have a burning disdain for you. But as for giving you a ride, I'm only doing what's right. My parents always taught me to take pity on stray animals," she retorted.

Ouch. He should have never opened his mouth. But now that he had…there was no way that he was going to let Tenten get the last word.

"Speaking of animals, I saw your ex-boyfriend making out with some freshman in the cafeteria the other day. He was kissing her in between showing his ability to snort milk out of his nose to his buddies."

"He must have been making out with Leah Nelson. Isn't she that girl who turned you down for a date last month?" Tenten came back at him.

Ouch again. Tenten was an expert at getting under his skin. Why did he find it necessary to provoke her the minute he got into the car? Because you're an idiot, Neji told himself. But it was too late to take it back. So far, this day wasn't a very good start.

For the tenth time, Neji regretted the fact that he ad let his mom talk him into asking Tenten to the prom. Not that he had resisted the idea. He knew that Tenten's mom had always had a not-so-secret hope that Tenten and him would fall in love. Making her happy by taking Tenten to the prom was the least he could do for the woman who had been just like his second mom to him since he was five.

It was ironic really. Neji could have named at least six guys who would have killed to take Tenten to the prom. And now he, her archenemy had asked her to the dance as a favor to her mom. At what point is life going to start making sense, he wondered as Tenten slammed on the brakes to avoid going through a yellow light.

"So have you thought up a good excuse to get out of going to the prom with me yet?" Tenten asked, almost as if she had been reading his mind.

"Why? Have you found some no-brained jock you'd rather go with?"

Neji had never understood Tenten's taste in guys. She flirted from one amiable good-looking bonehead to another. Apparently, she enjoyed the company of guys who resembled friendly puppies. Naturally, none of these relationship lasted for more than three or four weeks. Sometimes he thought that she chose her dates based solely on who would provide the best material for his stinging barbs.

"For you information, Ken was a National Merit semifinalist," she retorted, referring to her last sort-of-boyfriend. "Not everyone finds it necessary to flaunt their smarts in order to get attention." She added.

Neji decided not to respond to that particular comment.

"Now don't you worry. Once we get to the dance, you can flirt with any National Merit semifinalist you want to."

"I know Neji. We'll do the limo, we'll do the corsage, and we'll do the pictures. After we make nice for the parents, we're both free to do whatever we want once we arrive at the prom." Tenten declared.

"Unless you want to be real dates," Neji said quickly. "I mean, its not like I'm going to refuse to dance with you or anything."

Tenten snorted. "I'll have plenty of people to do that with, "she assured him. "Don't you worry your tickle-brained little head."

"Say no more, I'll be more than happy to leave you to your own devices."

"Good."

That word had the ring of a definitive, final statement. Tenten was done with the conversation. That's fine with Neji. Who cared if Tenten didn't want to talk to him? He didn't want to talk to her either. Still her attitude was just irritating him. She didn't have to be so bummed about going to the prom with him. It wasn't as if he were a total loser. In fact, he wasn't any kind of loser. Not that he would ever let Tenten know that she had even slightly gotten to him. He might not be too proud to cop a ride, but he had his limits.

Neji was getting the sinking feeling that prom night was going to be a replay of the date from hell in the eighth grade. At least it can't be any worse, he thought.

Sometimes it was hard for him to believe that at one time in their lives, Tenten and him had almost been inseparable. She was the first girl he really got to know. In truth, she was the first girl Neji ever loved. Neji sighed quietly, glancing at Tenten out of the corner of his eye. Now that they were not engaged in verbal combat, he could really study her face. She looked as beautiful as she always did…but something was off.

She's got circles under her eyes, he realized. She's tired. Sure, she was wearing blush and lipstick and whatever else it was that girls wore to make themselves look totally put together. But beyond the makeup, Neji could see that Tenten was exhausted.

Suddenly, all the fire seeped out of his bones.next to him sat the girl he had grown up with and she was going through the worst time of her entire life. Neji felt a deep pang of sympathy but he knew better than to say anything aloud to Tenten. She wasn't the type of person who wanted to acknowledge any kind of weakness. If he let her knew that he sensed her pain, it would only make her feel worse. There was, however, something he could do.

He could offer Tenten what he always offered her. A person with whom she could argue and vent and relieve some of the tension that must be building up inside her. It wasn't much…but it was all Neji had to give…

* * *

**Author's Notes:**_Thanks for reading and don't forget to review! I'll read every single one of them and try to reply all of them. Sakura and Sasuke will appear in the next chapter! Until then, bye!_


	3. Chapter 2

**Up All Night**

_Summary: AU. Characters are OOC. Sure, Neji's cute, but he's also obnoxious! So try telling that to Tenten's mom. She thinks that Neji is the perfect guy for Tenten. So when Neji surprised Tenten by asking her to the prom, she had to say yes for her sick mom whom she didn't want to let down, even if it meant spending the most romantic night of her life with him. Neji. The guy she can't stand. On the other hand, Sakura isn't interested in love. Her parents are divorced and Sakura is pretty down on couple hood. The last thing on her mind is jumping into a relationship, that is, until Sasuke comes along. Will these 2 girls have their perfect prom night? Pairings: Neji/Tenten, Sasuke/Sakura._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto!_

_Rated: PG_

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Chapter 2

"Do you think Jun would like me?" Sakura wondered aloud.

It was Tuesday and Tenten and Sakura were having lunch at their usual table in the lunchroom. Since the cafeteria was serving an orange glop they had the audacity to call "macaroni and cheese", Tenten was glad she had the wisdom to bring a smoked ham sandwich from home.

"Aren't you off relationships?"

"Well…yeah…I was…until I saw him…but I don't know if that's called love. But I really think I like him." Said Sakura.

"Really? Well, go for it then! I'm with you all the way!" Tenten said brightly.

"How? I don't think he likes me…" said Sakura sadly.

"Why don't you tell him? And ask him to the prom too."

"I can't…I freak out everytime I see him. Imagine what would happen if I went straight up to him and talk. I'd probably faint."

"Write him a letter or something."

"Letter? Well, yeah that sounds good…that…"

Tenten sighed as Sakura went into a ramble in a dreamy tone. Tenten resisted the urge just to close her eyes, put her head on the table and let Sakura's babbling swirl around her like a gentle stream. She never thought the sound of her friend's voice could be so…soothing. Sure, Sakura's problem was minor compared to what she was dealing with. But that's exactly what she liked about having Sakura around. Sakura had made a tacit agreement not to push her to talk about her mom's illness and she not to talk about Sakura's parents' divorce. Both of them knew they weren't the type to pour out serious problems and they respected each other's wish to maintain their privacies. At the same time, Tenten knew that Sakura would be there for her when she needed to talk, and her there for Sakura.

"Well, that's settled then, I would write him a letter expressing my so called love for him and ask him to the prom! What do you think Tenten?" Sakura asked, interrupting Tenten's thoughts.

This time, Tenten did laugh. Sakura sounded so serious as if she were discussing a Middle Eastern peace agreement rather than expression of "love".

"That sounds alright. Go for it! I'm sure he likes you too. I saw how he looks at you during classes sometimes."

Sakura's eyes lit up. "Do you really think he likes me?"

Tenten settled more comfortably in her chair, ready to launch into a long, detailed discussion about the state of Sakura and Jun's relationship. Friends. What would she do without them?

On Thursday morning after school, Tenten stood hidden behind a pillar while she peeked at Sakura glancing nervously around her. Suddenly, Tenten saw the target approaching and gestured frantically at Sakura. Sakura saw the hint and started trembling nervously. Well, here goes, she thought.

Sakura close her eyes and shot out her hands holding the letter she so carefully written two nights ago.

"Hi Jun, I like you very much, please go to the prom with me!" she blurted out in a rush.

Tenten winced at what she saw. Sakura opened her eyes and saw that Jun just walked past her without even looking at her. What happened? Sakura looked up slowly and to her horror, she saw another guy smirking at her and her outstretched hands with the letter were directed towards him. She stared into his onyx eyes as he continued smirking. Finally, she broke the trance uncomfortably.

"S..sss..sorry, I…I got t..the w..wrong person!" Sakura stammered.

The guy just kept staring and smirking at her.

Help! Someone help me, Sakura screamed in her mind.

"Hey Sakura, come over here!" said Tenten.

Sakura looked at Tenten and hurriedly jogged to where Tenten was and both girls walked quickly away from the scene.

When the girls finally left, the tall raven hair guy looked down and saw Sakura's letter on the floor. He grinned evilly.

"Oh my god Sakura! How could you get the wrong guy!" Tenten yelled.

"I don't know! What the hell happened! I am such a failure! Forget it! I am off relationships!" moaned Sakura dejectedly.

"Don't say that! It was just a mistake. Try again tomorrow." Tenten comforted.

"No way, it's so embarrassing! I wont do it again!"

"Come on, don't give up! You've come this far!" urged Tenten.

"Well…if you say so. I guess I shouldn't give up so easily…"

"Great, I'll help you out again tomorrow. Hey, where's your letter?" asked Tenten as she noticed Sakura not holding anything in her hands.

Sakura looked at her hands and started to panic. "Where's my letter?"

"That's what I was asking you!"

"Oh no! I lost it!" shouted Sakura.

"Maybe you dropped it at that place. Let's go look for it. Don't worry, it'll still be there."

The girls hurried to the scene before but Sakura couldn't find the letter anywhere.

"Where is it!" asked Sakura worriedly.

"Maybe it got blown away by the wind or something. Don't worry, you can write a new one tonight."

"Well, I hope it gets blown far away! I don't want anyone reading my letter!" said Sakura.

"Don't worry! Everything's going to be fine! Listen, I got to go, I'll catch you later ok?"

"Ok, thanks Tenten."

After Tenten left, Sakura continued looking for her letter, hoping that she could find it. She was so engrossed in searching for it that she didn't see anyone coming up to her and she bumped her head onto someone's legs and fell on her bum. Sakura started to curse and look at.

"Why don't you watch where you're going, you stupid dumb …" Sakura stopped mid sentence when she saw who the person was.

"Are you looking for this?"

Sakura stared at what he was holding and stood up. She stared at her letter and walked slowly towards him.

"Yes, thank you very much! Please return it to me!" Sakura blurted as she reached out and grabbed the letter. However, all she grabbed was the air.

The guy held the letter above his head and smirked at her again.

"Do you think I would be waiting for you here just to return this to you?"

Sakura looked at him pleadingly. But all she got was an even larger smirk.

"You can have your letter back. But on one condition."

"What do you want?" asked Sakura.

"You have to do everything I ask you to do."

"What? No!"

"Fine then. What do you think would happen if I make copies of this letter and distribute it to everyone in school? Including the guy whose name is on this letter?"

"You're an asshole!" Sakura shouted.

"So, deal or no deal?"

Sakura just stood there fuming.

"I take that as a yes."

He gave her one last smirk and walked away. Sakura just stared at the spot he was standing and crumbled to the ground. _Why me…_she thought miserably…

The moment Tenten put her car into reverse in order to pull out of the parking space and head home, the feeling of well-being she had enjoyed just a few moments ago started to evaporate. Matt, the guy she liked just talked to her! His blue eyes, his scent, his voice…all of that seemed like a surreal daydream. Now she just wanted to get home and see how her mom was feeling.

Tenten shook her head, willing away the fear she always felt when it was time to go home. Will her mom be worse? Will she be in pain? Is she having a good day? A bad day? The same questions ran through her mind again and again everyday.

Tenten backed out o her packing space and drove slowly through the nearly empty lot. The rain had turned the sky dark and it felt more like seven o'clock then four. She needed a nap. Maybe when she got home, she would crawl into bed with her mom and doze for an hour or so before her dad got home. Even now, there was no place she felt safer than at her mom's side.

Her mom always had the power to soothe whatever chaos was going on inside her head – even when it was her own illness that was the source of that chaos. A mother's instinct, Tenten thought. Her mom always knew what to say.

As Tenten started down the street that led to her block, she caught sight of a lone, dark figure on the side of the street. She knew that walk, she thought. Because of the rain, she couldn't see his face. But there was no doubt in her mind that it was Neji.

She should let him slosh through puddles all the way to Sunset Avenue, she thought. After the way he was going after her a few mornings ago, the guy deserved to catch pneumonia on his way home.

This was what she believed, but she already knew that she was going to pull over and take the boy out of his misery. She couldn't help herself. Neji just looked so…pathetic. Tenten stopped next to the curb and blared the horn.

Through the rain, she saw Neji's head swivel toward her car. A second later, he was jogging in her direction. Tenten rolled down her window and thrust her head into the rain.

"All aboard for Noah's ark," she called.

Neji sprinted around the car, yanked open the passenger-side door and dove into the seat.

"Thanks Tenten!" Neji said as he slammed the door shut and heaved what sounded like a huge sigh of relief.

"I was seriously worried that the five pages of notes I have to study for my history test were going to get so wet that the erasable ink was going to run all over the place."

"No problem," Tenten answered. "I mean, its not like I have to go out of my way to take you home." She added.

And if she were perfectly honest with herself, she would have to admit that she preferred even the company of Neji to the onslaught of concerns that had been ricocheting around her brain. Of course, admitting that to herself didn't mean she was going to confess it to him.

Neji shook out his shaggy head of dark hair, sending a million droplets of water in Tenten's direction. Tenten opened her mouth to tell him that it was supposed to be raining outside. Then she stopped herself, snapping her jaw shut. He sounded so genuinely grateful for the ride home that she decided to allow just this one obnoxious gesture to slide. There were, after all, those moments when she almost liked Neji. They were few and far behind but they did exist.

"You know who you look like right now?" Neji asked, settling into his seat.

"Who?"

"Ms. Whiskers."

Tenten raised an eyebrow. "And who is Ms. Whiskers?" she asked, knowing that she was going to regret the question.

Neji grinned. "She was one of my favorite stuffed animals. Ms. Whiskers was a big, pink rat…until I left her out in the rain one afternoon. Then she was a big, pink, drowned rat."

"Gee…thanks." Tenten said sarcastically. She had stopped to give Neji a ride out of the goodness of her heart and his reaction had been to compare her to a drowned rat. Touching…SO much for that fleeting moment of near tolerance.

"It's not too late for me to stop this car and make you walk." Tenten pointed out. "We rats aren't known for out generous spirits."

"Hey watch what you say about Ms. Whiskers. She was a loyal friend, until that day."

"Are you this annoying all the time?" Tenten asked. "Or do you save the "special" parts of your personality for just me alone?"

Neji scoffed. "You think I'm annoying?" he demanded.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but I could have sworn I saw you driving into the parking lot with Matt Fowler." He added.

Okay, now he was asking for it, Tenten thought.

"What's wrong with Matt?" she demanded.

"Nothing…he's a nice enough guy if you like the type."

I am not going to respond, Tenten told herself. This is a trap. She stared straight ahead, focusing on the moment of her windshield wipers.

Neji cleared his throat. "So is that the guy you're so psyched to hand out with at the prom? Pretty boy Matt Fowler?"

Tenten rolled her eyes. "I don't see how that's any of your business." She retorted. "Last time I checked, I didn't need to clear my dance partners with you. Having said that, yes, Matt and I will probably be keeping each other company during prom night."

Neji snorted. "Matt's a really deep guy," he remarked, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "But I guess his good looks make up for his lack of personality."

"Ha! Its not like Wendy Spencer is known for her sparkling personality!" Tenten spat out.

Neji frowned. "How do you know about Wendy?"

"Please! You're not exactly a master of subtlety, Hyuga. I happened to see you practicing your lame brand of flirting with the girl in the cafeteria the other day."

"So?" he asked.

"So it doesn't take a NASA engineer to figure out that you've got the hots for her." Tentn paused. "Although why you would want to go out with a ditz like Wendy is a complete mystery to me." She continued.

"Wendy is a very nice person," Neji stated as id he were giving her a good reference for a potential future employer.

"Suit yourself. You can date Wendy or Bambi or Candy for all I care."

"Thanks for the stamp of approval. Now I'll be able to sleep at night, " Neji retorted.

The rain had let up considerably in the last few minutes, leaving only a drizzle that seemed less romantic than the torrents that had been coming down when Matt had been talking to me. Tenten found herself wishing for something more dramatic – thunder, lightning, hail. The drizzle was just plain…dreary.

Finally, Tenten stopped the car in front of her house.

"Do you think you have the strength to make it from here?" she asked.

Neji glanced at the block toward his house. "Yeah, I think I'll manage." Then his eyes moved toward the driveway beside Tenten's house. "But I guess my mom cant even walk a block. Her car is here."

"Your mom is the greatest." Tenten told Neji. "I don't know what we would do without her."

Neji nodded. "She…well, she wants to do whatever she can do to help. You know how much your mom means to her."

Tenten nodded.

"How is she? I mean, my mom talks about her…but she doesn't like to focus on her illness." Neji asked.

Now, that was the sixty-four-thousand-dollar question. How was her mom doing? Tenten wanted to say she was doing fine. She wanted to say she was getting stronger every day. She wanted to give him a million of different positive responses. But none of them would have been true. Her mom was getting weaker every day and there was absolutely nothing that she, or anyone else, could do about it.

Tenten didn't even realize that tears had started to toll down her face. It wasn't until she felt Neji's hand on her shoulder that she realized her cheeks were wet. She wanted to stop the tears but the unexpected gentleness of Neji's touch triggered something inside her.

Maybe it was the knowledge that if someone like Neji felt sorry for her, then the situation had to be truly awful. Maybe it was due to the fact that she had been bottling up her feelings for days, weeks, months and she couldn't hold back for one second. Or maybe it was simply that it had been a while since some one had come right out and asked her that simple question. Tenten couldn't help herself and she started to sob. As she cried, she felt the tension slowly start to dissolve.

"Tenten, I'm so sorry…I didn't mean to…"Neji whispered softly.

"Its not your fault, I just…I don't know…" Tenten interrupted.

Talk about humiliating. Of all times to crack, she had to do it with none other than Hyuga Neji sitting next to her. She breathed deeply, willing to let the tears to stop.

"I don't usually cry, I don't want anyone's pity, it's just that sometimes…"

"Hey, don't think twice about it. Crying is the most natural thing in the world." Neji said, his hand still on her shoulder.

Tenten rolled her eyes. "Yeah right. I'm sure you cry all the time."

Neji kindness was threatening to bring a whole new fresh round of tears. Be strong, don't let him see you're hurting, Tenten told herself. Well it was a little too late since he had already witness her total breakdown.

"I do cry, just last week I had a nail stuck into my toe and I was crying like a baby. And the other day I was watching one of those cheesy soapy movies, the tears hit me before I knew it.

Tenten giggled. "Let me guess, you carry around hankie just in case you happen to stub your toe?"

"As a matter of fact, I made it a policy never to leave home without a pack of Kleenex." Said Neji as he unzipped his bag and passed her some tissues.

"Thanks," Tenten said as she dabbed at her eyes.

"Those could really come in handy when the bullies at school try to steal out money or lunch. One time I wept all through my missing-turkey casserole," Neji said in a gravely serious voice.

Tenten giggled again. And then she started to laugh. Really laugh.

"I hope you never get into carpentry. I would hate to see what would happened if you accidentally hit you thumb with a hammer!" Tenten said in between laughs.

"Forget about it! We're talking about a major flood! A total disaster!" Neji replied.

Tenten kept laughing. It wasn't that Neji was so funny, although she had to admit the guy had a sense of humor. It just felt so good to really and truly laugh that she never wanted to stop. After what felt like an hour, but was probably just two minutes, the laughter slowly started to subside.

"Its good to see you smile, Tenten." Neji whispered gently.

Tenten looked into his deep brown eyes and they just stared at each other until Tenten started talking.

"I'm a mess," she moaned. "First I'm sobbing then I'm laughing hysterically! I don't want anyone to see me like this."

" Hey as far I'm concerned, this never happened." Neji shrugged.

Tenten nodded. "Do you mind just leaving me alone? I don't want to go inside until I am one hundred per cent calm."

"Say no more," Neji said as he hopped out of the car. Neji gave her one last glance. "Thanks for the ride." He said and shut the door gently and began jogging to his house.

Tenten closed her eyes and leaned her head against the back of the seat. She couldn't believe she totally lost it in front of Neji. She didn't want that to happen again, but then she had to admit that Neji was cool.

For a few minutes, she felt like they were back in the sixth grade, talking and laughing like there was no one else in the world. She really needed that.

_Thanks Neji_, Tenten said to herself. This was one time he really helped her. Tenten unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of her car. She couldn't wait to go inside and talk to her mom. Maybe she could have a few laughs with the woman she loved most in the world…

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**Author's Notes: **_Thanks for reading! Please review! I am pretty busy with school now but I'll try to update as soon as I can! Don't worry! I will definitely finish all my stories! See ya in the next chapter!_


	4. Chapter 3

**Up All Night**

_Summary: AU. Characters are OOC. Sure, Neji's cute, but he's also obnoxious! So try telling that to Tenten's mom. She thinks that Neji is the perfect guy for Tenten. So when Neji surprised Tenten by asking her to the prom, she had to say yes for her sick mom whom she didn't want to let down, even if it meant spending the most romantic night of her life with him. Neji. The guy she can't stand. On the other hand, Sakura isn't interested in love. Her parents are divorced and Sakura is pretty down on couple hood. The last thing on her mind is jumping into a relationship, that is, until Sasuke comes along. Will these 2 girls have their perfect prom night? Pairings: Neji/Tenten, Sasuke/Sakura._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto!_

_Rated: PG

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_

Chapter 3

"That stupid pig-faced bloody bastard!" Sakura said to herself, her voice muffled by the large bags of potato chips and cans of drinks she was carrying. As she trudged grudgingly to one of the classrooms, she continued her string of curses while the students along the corridor stared at her strangely. She ignored them completely.

"_Why should I do all these things for him? So what if he's the son of the president of the school. That idiot Uchiha Sasuke. What does he think he is? That's it! I am going to express my love for Jun and there's nothing he can threaten me with anymore! Why didn't I think of that earlier?" Sakura thought to herself. _

"I had enough of your nonsense!" Sakura yelled as she dumped her load onto the desk in front of Sasuke. She looked up at him and glared her meanest glare she could muster.

"I have decided to express my love for Jun, so I am not afraid of you now!"

"Oh yeah? Can you really?" Sasuke challenged.

"O..of c..course I can! Watch me!" retorted Sakura as she stormed out of the classroom.

Sasuke and his friends just laughed at her.

"I can do it! I can! I must! I will!" Sakura muttered to herself as she headed to the basketball court where Jun frequents.

Halfway, Sakura was stopped by a blonde she had never seen before.

"Haruno Sakura, stop right there!"

"Who are you? How do you know my name?" Sakura questioned.

"You don't have to know how I am. Just keep your hands off Sasuke, or else you'll regret it!"

"Sasuke again! What's so great about him? If not for my letter he took, I wouldn't want to go near him!"

"What letter?"

"It's none of your business!" Sakura shouted as she walked off.

As she tried to calm herself down and walked unsteadily towards the courts, her heart skipped a beat when she saw Jun walking by. She closed her eyes to calm herself down and mustered all her courage to call his name.

"Jun, wait up!"

Jun turned around and gave Sakura a smile.

"Hey Sakura, what's up?"

"I…um…I…"

Jun looked at her in concern. "Are you…."

"I like you very much, can you please go to the prom with me?" Sakura interrupted and blurted her sentence.

Time seemed to just stop after Sakura spoke. It seemed like ten hours, ten weeks, ten months… Finally, Sakura looked up and Jun's warm chocolate brown eyes met her emerald eyes. Sakura's heart was thumping madly against her chest as she stared at Jun's expressionless face. _Oh god, he's going to reject me,_ _I must have looked like such a fool,_ she thought.

To her surprise, Jun's face lit up into a smile and Sakura's head went into a swirl as he whispered into her ear.

"Yes, I would love to go to the prom with you. Thanks for asking me Sakura. I wanted to ask you that a really long time ago, but…well, you could say that I don't have as much courage as you do…"

Sakura couldn't believe her ears. Did he just say that he liked her too? This was the best moment in her life! She burst into a fit of giggles and hugged Jun. _It turned out well after all, _she thought to herself. Unknown to the new happy couple, a pair of onyx eyes were staring intently at them, frowning at what he saw. He balled his hands into a fist and walked off briskly.

On Friday morning during the break, Tenten headed to her usual spot at the cafeteria and spotted Sakura sitting there alone, looking like her whole world just came crushing down on her. Tenten approached her cautiously and tapped at her shoulder.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Tenten asked gently.

Sakura looked at Tenten sadly and sighed.

"Jun and you are doing well right? He didn't break up with you right?" Tenten asked in concern.

"It's worst. It's my worst nightmare! I can't believe it! My whole life is ruin!"

"What…"

Before Tenten could ask what happened, someone else interrupted her.

"Hey my dear big sister, the old geezer asked you to come over for dinner tonight with your mom."

Sakura just groaned. Tenten looked up at the voice and was extremely taken aback to see Sasuke staring at Sakura.

"Don't forget," Sasuke added, whispering into her ear, sending chills down her back. He gave her one last smirk and walked off.

Tenten looked at Sakura curiously and gave her the please-explain-everything look.

"Don't look at me like that! It's…it's my mom. She…she's getting married again." Sakura paused and looked at Tenten. "To the president of the school." She forced the last sentence out of her mouth.

Tenten gasped. "So…that makes you and Sasuke…step siblings?"

"Don't remind me! That jerk! Now I have to face him the rest of my life. I'm really happy for my mom. She finally found someone who loves her after that horrible dad of mine cheated on her. I could tell that she's really happy with her new man, and he seems really kind as well. But…oh man…I thought the whole ordeal with that jerk has ended and now…he is my stepbrother! I don't know what to say…"

Tenten looked at her friend sympathetically. "I'm sure things will work out between both of you. You just got off the wrong start."

"I don't know…Tenten…I don't know…" Sakura sighed dejectedly.

Sitting across the cafeteria, a spying blonde scowled in anger when she saw the exchange between Sasuke and Sakura. "She's going to get it…I told her to stay away, that bitch!" she muttered angrily to herself.

The first thing Tenten was aware of when she opened her eyes on Saturday morning was that she felt incredibly well rested. The second thing she was aware of was her dad-whistling coming from somewhere downstairs.

Tenten felt a sudden jolt of adrenaline and sat up straight in her bed. She had set up her alarm clock such that she would be the first one to wake up in the morning. What was her dad doing up already? Getting up early to make breakfast for the family was the one duty she had taken seriously. She glanced at her alarm clock and her eyes bulged out when she saw the time. Twelve thirty in the afternoon. She had overslept!

"Oh no!" Tenten yelled at she stumbled out of bed. What had happened? Did she turn off her alarm clock in her sleep? She had her arms halfway into the sleeves of her t-shirt when she heard a knock on her door.

"Dad, is that you? I'm sorry I woke up late. I don't know what happened." Tenten called out.

"It's not dad." The door opened and Tenten saw her mom smiling brightly at her. "Good morning sleepy head! I told dad to sneak in and turn off your alarm clock so that you can get your well deserved rest." She said brightly.

"Thanks…" For a moment, Tenten felt as though life was back to normal. Sleeping late, her dad whistling and her mom greeting her in the morning with the mug of herbal tea she was holding. It was all so routine. Routine but wonderfully magical.

"How do you feel honey?" she asked as she opened the blinders of Tenten's windows.

"I feel great. How are you?" answered Tenten.

Her mom sat down on her bed and replied, "Tenten, I woke up at seven today and I could feel it in my bones that today is one of those precious and rare good days."

Tenten sat her mug on the nightstand and hugged her mom's waist. "Really?"

Her mom nodded and smiled. "I have a fabulous idea."

"What is it?"

Let's invite the Hyugas over for dinner tonight. We'll all stuff ourselves and then play a game of charades." She suggested.

"But I…" Tenten started and then stopped. Have a date with Matt, she said the last part in her head silently.

"What sweetie? Do you have any plans tonight?"

Tenten shook her head. "No! I was just going to suggest we play Pictionary instead of charades."

"Then it's a plan! We might even let you and Neji be a team in the Pictionary game!" her mom declared cheerily.

_Perfect, goodbye date with Matt and Hello evening with the urchin snouted boar…_thought Tenten in dismay.

But there was no date that would make her give up spending time with her mom when she was feeling this good. She hadn't seen her cheeks this bright in ages. And if a family dinner with the Hyugas would make her happy, then she would gladly be Neji's best friend during that few hours. Anything to make her mom feel happy.

"Great, I'll call them now!" said Tenten's mom as she left her bedroom.

Tenten sat on her bed for a while and then pick up her phone to cancel her date with Matt. She just hoped he wouldn't feel too angry about her canceling out on him at the last moment.

"It smells great in here." Neji said as he walked into the kitchen of Tenten's house.

Tenten looked up from the pan. "Hey, I didn't hear all of you come in."

"We got here about five minutes ago. Your mom looks great," said Neji.

Tenten nodded, beaming. "I know! She's been like this the whole day. Its just so great, I cant express how glad I feel."

She didn't have to explain. Neji could see that the expression on her face said it all. Her eyes were shining, her cheeks were flushed and her grin was so huge that it almost took up her entire face. He couldn't help but to grin back.

"Thanks for coming tonight, Neji. I'm sure you have a million of other things better to do than to spend your night here for a family dinner."

"Nope, I have nothing much to do anyway," replied Neji. But that was a lie. He had been planning to go to a baseball game with his friends weeks ago. But as soon as his mom told him that they would be going over to Tenten's for dinner, he knew that he had to give up his baseball plans.

Neji wasn't stupid. He knew that there was this possibility that this was the last time their two families will be having a dinner like this. Maybe hanging out with Tenten wasn't first on his list, but they had lots of awesome fun times when they were younger. And it would mean a lot to his mom if he were there.

"So, are you just going to stand there and stare at me or are you going to help me out?" Tenten asked, breaking his train of thoughts.

Neji grabbed an apron and Tenten started to giggle.

"Don't worry, I wont tell you friends about this particular fashion choice."

"If you do, I'll just deny everything!" Neji joked.

"So what are we making?" Neji asked.

"Orange tarragon chicken, baked potato with cheese, almond rice and toffee cookie diamonds for dessert."

Neji whistled. "I had no idea you had turned into such a gourmand. Last I remembered, you couldn't even boil a pot of water."

Tenten laughed. "I've come a long way. See those?" Tenten asked as she pointed at a pile of cookbooks. "All mine," she said.

Neji was impressed. "I wouldn't have thought you were a kitchen sort of girl."

"Gee thanks, here cut those." Tenten said as she handed him some onions.

"I..uh..that didn't come out right. I didn't mean to say that… I…uh…I'm just totally wowed by your cooking talent," he stammered.

"Don't worry about it Neji. I'm learning how to cook just to help out the family a bit."

"I really admire how you're handling all this. I don't know what I would do if my mom was sick," Neji said quietly.

"I pray to god you'll never have to know how you'd handle it. This isn't something I would wish on my worst enemy."

"Is that what I am? You worst enemy?" Neji asked.

Tenten looked at him for a long time. "Nope, you're just a pain in the butt."

Neji laughed. "Right back at you!"

"I have a proposal," she said.

"What is it?"

"I say we don't talk anything relating to my mom's illness during these few hours. I just want to forget that she's ever sick."

Neji sat his knife down and looked at Tenten. "Could you do that?"

She gave him a smile that looked so brave that it made his heart ache. "I could try, Neji."

"Count me in." said Neji.

Tenten examined the pile he just cut and remarked, "It looks good."

"Thanks."

"Think you could move on to cooking the rice?"

"Uh…"

Tenten groaned. "I'll walk you through it step by step."

As Neji filled the giant pot with water, he couldn't help but think that he was experiencing something that people might describe as "fun". Since their usual icy rapport was thawing out, tonight really felt like the old times and Neji liked it. He liked it a lot.

"This is the best meal I've tasted," Neji said as their families tucked into the food.

Mrs Hyuga laughed. "Is that a hint to my cooking?"

"You're an excellent chef," Mr Hyuga told Tenten.

Neji saw Tenten blushed. "I just hope the toffee cookies come out alright. I think I burnt the crust."

"They'll will wonderful. I'm sure Neji would it a dozen to prove it." Tenten's dad said.

Tenten's mom leaned back into her seat and gazed at Neji and Tenten. "I cant wait to see both of you on Prom night."

Tenten shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "Mom…"

"I'm sorry sweetie, but surely you can indulge your old mom when she wants to bask in the reflected glow of young love."

Suddenly, Neji realized that Tenten's mom was under the impression that Tenten and he were more than just prom dates. She must have thought that they were going into some major relationship. Under normal circumstances, Neji would have no doubt that Tenten would probably tell her mom what a crazy idea that was and to go on for hours, telling her mom what a jerk he was.

But right now Neji figured that Tenten would do anything just to make her mom smile. And if that included letting her mom believe that they were an item, it was his job to keep this illusion going on.

Neji took a deep breath, preparing to take the plunge. And then he did it. He slung his hand over her shoulders. _Please don't humiliate me by slapping my arm away_, Neji thought nervously.

However, Tenten didn't and Neji relaxed.

"I can't wait to go to the prom. I'm sure Tenten would be the most beautiful girl there," Neji commented.

That much was true. Despite her many personality flaws, Neji couldn't deny that Tenten would look great in her prom dress. He could imagine her creamy, smooth skin, luscious red lips, long, shiny hair…hang on, this was Tenten he was talking about!

So it was Tenten, but Neji was a guy. He was human. He wasn't going to pretend that he didn't like the sensation of having his arm around her. It felt pretty great, actually. Its only taken him five years to get another chance to put his arm around her, he thought. That must be a world record.

"Neji and I will dance the night away, it would be like a movie, " Tenten told the group.

Then she leaned in close to him. "Just like a bad movie," she whispered.

Absurdly, Tenten's stinging remark was like getting a knife in the chest. Neji quickly removed his arm and put his hands on his lap. So much for Ms. Nice Girl. Tenten was just being nice to him to please her mom. He should have known.

Yes, he should have known. But for that one second, when he had thought that she actually meant they were going to dance the night away, his heart had thumped. You're insane, Neji told himself. He didn't even like her. He must have been caught up in the moment, which was all. It could happen to anyone.

"A really bad movie," he whispered back to let her know that he was in on the "joke".

Still the magic of the night was gone. When Tenten left the table to get the toffee cookies, he found that he had just lost his appetite.

Monday morning passed by like a flash of lightening. Sakura was walking towards the girl's lockers when she felt someone grab her hand and dragging her in the opposite direction.

"Tenten, what are you doing?"

"Sakura, you got to see this!" Tenten said anxiously.

After a minute or two, Sakura was brought to the school's notice board. A large crowd was standing in front of it.

"Go on, look at the board." Tenten urged.

The students already there started to look at her teasingly and some of them even pointed their fingers at her and laughed. A confused Sakura pushed her way to the front of her notice board and almost fainted at what she saw. She stood firmly on her feet for a couple of seconds trying to stay calm. But her calmness turned into fury as she ripped off the entire posted love letters she had written for Jun. She knew very well who did this. She grabbed a fistful of letters and stormed off, pushing the other students out of her way towards the direction of Sasuke's classroom.

"Sakura…" Tenten called but was being ignored.

"How dare you! You're a loser!" Sakura screamed as she gave Sasuke a big tight slap across his cheek.

"What the hell are you doing?" Sasuke yelled angrily as he stood up, towering over her.

Sakura threw the letters she had grabbed previously on his feet and glared at him. "Why did you post my letters all over the notice board? You're a jerk! Do you even know what love is? Have you loved anyone before? I don't think so! You're just a cold, heartless jerk!"

Sasuke returned Sakura's glare. His piercing eyes bore into Sakura's emerald eyes and she took a step back. "Yeah, I've never loved before. So what? You know what? I think my mom left me because I was too much for her to handle." He said fiercely.

Sakura angrily backed off the classroom without another word.

"Wow…she…"

"Shut up!" Sasuke shouted to his friend Shikamaru and walked off in anger.

_What the hell am I suppose to do now? How would Jun feel about all this? I hope he isn't angry…_Sakura thought as she walked aimlessly around the school.

"Hey Sakura…" a voice interrupted her thoughts.

Sakura glanced up and saw Jun. She tried to avoid his gaze and walk off but was held back.

"What's wrong?"

"Aren't you angry?" Sakura asked uncertainly.

"Why should I be? Everyone knows what a jerk Uchiha is. I feel sorry that he's going to be your step brother…"

"Jun…"

"Say no more." Jun said as he drew Sakura into a hug.

Sakura sighed as she snuggled into Jun's arms. _At least our relationship is still alive_…she thought.

"Jun, I have to get home now. I'll see you tomorrow ok?" Sakura said as she broke from Jun's embrace.

After bidding Jun goodbye, Sakura started her lonely walk home._ How am I going to live in the same house as him my whole life? Will I even survive this year? _Sakura was so deep into her thoughts that she didn't see someone in front of her and she bumped into the person.

"So, have you learnt your lesson? I told you not to get near him again."

"What?" Sakura looked confused for a second and then it dawned on her.

"You're the one who posted my letter on the notice board!"

The blonde girl smirked.

"Why did you do that?" Sakura demanded angrily.

"I told you that you'd regret if you don't stay away from him."

"Bitch…who are you anyway!"

"Me? I'm Sasuke's girlfriend Yamanaka Ino. Remember that and stay away from him. If I see you near him again, you're dead!" she threatened.

Before Sakura could retort, Ino walked off as quickly as she arrived.

_Oh Great, now his girlfriend treats me as her rival. And I've wronged him…_she realized_. Damn…how am I suppose to apologize to him…_Sakura thought back of the things she said to him and scolded herself for saying such harsh things to him_. Oh…why am I always getting myself into a mess? _Sakura moaned.

The next day at school, Sakura was still thinking how was she going to apologize to Sasuke when she was having lunch with Jun.

"Sakura…SAKURA?"

"Oh sorry Jun, what were you saying?"

"What were you thinking of? You looked so engrossed."

"Erm…Nothing! Listen, I got to go now, I'll call you later ok?" Sakura said quickly as she bolted off.

"Hey you forgot your…wallet…"Jun said but Sakura was already gone. He got up and started to jog after her.

Sakura walked briskly towards Sasuke's classroom but she didn't need to go all the way there because the moment she walked out of the cafeteria into the corridor, she saw Sasuke walking away from her direction.

"Hey…"

Sasuke turned back and looked at Sakura.

"I…um…I'm sorry about yesterday…Uh…sorry for saying such things to you and sorry for misunderstanding you about the letter…"

Sasuke walked towards her and Sakura managed to hide her gulp as he stared at her intently.

"I'll accept whatever punishment. You can give me a punch." Pleaded Sakura, so that she would feel better.

"Really?" Sasuke smirked.

Sakura nodded.

"Ok then."

Sasuke balled his hands and raised it up, getting ready to strike her. Sakura closed her eyes, waiting for his fist to come into contact with her face. However, to her surprise, Sasuke pulled her towards him and a pair of warm lips covered her own. Sakura fluttered open her eyes in shock. After what seemed like eternity, Sasuke broke the kiss and Sakura just stared at the ground.

She could feel someone's eyes besides Sasuke's staring at her at the back of her head. She turned around and her whole world crumbled. There he was, five feet away, her boyfriend Jun staring at her.

"I thought you said both of you are siblings?" Jun asked in anger.

"I…"

"Hey you there, stay away from her from now on. I want Haruno Sakura." Sasuke yelled at Jun.

"What?" Sakura gaped at Sasuke in horror.

Jun gave Sasuke a glare and gave Sakura a betrayed look, which made Sakura feel so guilty. With that, he ran away in anger. Sakura looked at Sasuke and begins to sob.

"You've ruin my life, you jerk…I hate you!"

After Sakura walked away in tears, Sasuke frowned and had a strong feeling of guilt…

* * *

**Author's Notes:** _This chapter is the longest I've ever written. I hope you guys like it so far. Don't forget to review! I'll update as soon as possible! See ya!_


	5. Chapter 4

**Up All Night**

_Summary: AU. Characters are OOC. Sure, Neji's cute, but he's also obnoxious! So try telling that to Tenten's mom. She thinks that Neji is the perfect guy for Tenten. So when Neji surprised Tenten by asking her to the prom, she had to say yes for her sick mom whom she didn't want to let down, even if it meant spending the most romantic night of her life with him. Neji. The guy she can't stand. On the other hand, Sakura isn't interested in love. Her parents are divorced and Sakura is pretty down on couple hood. The last thing on her mind is jumping into a relationship, that is, until Sasuke comes along. Will these 2 girls have their perfect prom night? Pairings: Neji/Tenten, Sasuke/Sakura._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto!_

_Rated: PG_

* * *

Chapter 4 

Tenten held her pillow over her head, trying in vain to block out the sounds coming from her parents' room. It was almost two o'clock in the morning and she couldn't sleep. She had woken up from a deep sleep almost an hour ago to the sound of her mom whimpering in pain in her bedroom. Her soft, muffled crying made Tenten's heart feel like it had been shattered into a million shards of glass. She knew it was equally painful for her father. She could hear his gentle, murmuring voice as he spoke. He was probably rubbing her shoulders and whispering to her that everything was going to be all right.

But it wasn't. Tenten was starting to know in her heart that nothing was ever going to be all right again. The feeling had started the moment she arrived home. Her dad had been sitting on the sofa in the living room, just sort of staring at the wall. He hadn't even noticed that she had come inside. She had walked over to him and tapped him on the shoulder asking him if everything was all right.

He didn't nod or shake his head or say anything at all. He just blinked, as if Tenten had woken him from a deep sleep. She had never seen him look so defeated.

"Dad?" she asked, louder this time. "Is mom okay?"

Finally, he reached up and took Tenten's hand. "She had to increase her pain medication, hon."

Tenten hadn't asked him any more questions. She didn't want to. She was too afraid of what the answers might be. She had simply gone upstairs, kissed her mom as she lay sleeping and locked herself in her bedroom. Then she had buried herself in homework, resolutely pushing away the image of her dad's forlorn face.

But now that it was the middle of the night and the house was dark and quiet, except for the soft sounds coming from her parents' bedroom, she couldn't stop the thoughts that were whirling through her brain. Her mom was sick. She had cancer. Unless a miracle happened, she was going to die.

"She's going to die." Tenten had never said the words aloud before. She wasn't sure if she had even thought the words. They were the worst, most devastating, most terrifying words in the universe. _Save her_, Tenten thought. _If there's anyone out there, please save my mom, I'm begging you…_

And Tenten herself was exhausted. She was tired of being strong. She was tired of holding in her emotions so that nobody would know that she felt like she was slipping into a black hole. She felt like she was about to burst.

Suddenly, the house was completely silent. Both her parents were probably asleep. But she was wide-awake. She felt like she would never sleep again. She had to talk to somebody, she realized. She couldn't go another minute without telling someone about what she was going through. If she didn't, she was going to lose her mind.

She switched on the light next to her bed and picked up the receiver of her Minnie Mouse phone. She would call Sakura. She had her own telephone line and she knew that Sakura wouldn't mind if she woke her up in the middle of the night.

Then she set the phone down again. She knew that Sakura would be more than happy to listen to her vent. But where was she going to start? It had been her decision not to talk to Sakura much about her mom's illness. As a result, Sakura didn't know a lot about it. Tenten wanted to speak to someone who understood. Or came as close to understanding as someone who wasn't going through this could.

Neji. She didn't know what made her think of him, of all people. Maybe it was the fact that he had known her mom practically since the day he was born. Maybe it was because he had just seen her. Or because his mother was her mom's best friend. Or because he was the only on who had asked her about her mom's condition lately.

Maybe it's because he's been there for her before. She would never forget the day they had put their dog, Snoopy, to sleep. She had been in the sixth grade and when she got home from school, her mom told her that Snoopy had been hit by a car. The vet had done everything he could but if Snoopy lived, he would be in pain for the rest of her life. Up to that point, it had been the worst day of her life. What if they discovered a cure for whatever was wrong with Snoopy? What if he had wanted to live despite the pain?

That night she hadn't been able to sleep. Once she cried all of her tears, she realized that she had to speak to someone, and that person was Neji. He had been there when she taught Snoopy to fetch and sit. He had helped her dress Snoopy up as Yoda one Halloween night. He loved her just like she did.

Tenten had sneaked out of the house, terrified that her parents would wake up and ground her for a lifetime. Then she had sprinted to Neji's house and thrown pebbles at the window that used to be his bedroom. He had woken up and let her inside, no questions asked. She had stayed for two hours and when she left, she knew that she would be able to sleep.

Snapping back to the present, Tenten got out of her bed, feeling like she was running on an autopilot. She picked up the pink scrunchie sitting on her nightstand and pulled her hair back into a loose ponytail. Then she slipped into the jeans she had left lying next to her bed and pulled a T-shirt out of her drawer. There was only one person in the world she wanted to talk to right now. And it was the very last person she would have ever expected it to be…

Outside, the air was cool. Tenten jogged down the block, living completely in the moment. If she had stopped to think about what she was doing, she knew that she would turn around and go back to her house, where she would sit up all night, chewing on her fingernails.

Tenten slowed to a walk as she approached the Hyuga's house. She knew that Neji had moved down to the basement. She had heard her mom and his mom talking about it last year – something about Neji needing more privacy now that his hormones are raging.

Tenten crept to the side of the house. There it was. The front basement window. Was she really going to do this? But she had to. She needed to talk, and Neji was the only person who would be real with her. He wouldn't go overboard with condolences or try to pretend that he knew what she was going through. He would just be…him. Like he had been the night Snoopy died.

Tenten rapped on the small basement window three times. Then she waited. And waited. She knocked again. Finally, she decided to go back since he's probably sound asleep. And this was a totally insane idea anyway. By tomorrow, she would be fine. She would build back up her defenses overnight and she would cope.

Tenten started to turn away from the window,

"Tenten, is that you?" she heard Neji's voice behind her, coming from inside the house.

She turned around. Neji had opened the window and he was staring straight at her.

"Uh…yeah," she whispered. "I just…never mind. Go back to bed."

Neji shook his head. "No. Go around back. I'll let you through the basement door."

"Thanks." As Tenten headed toward the back of the house, she hoped she was doing the right thing.

Neji was her arch foe, her sparring partner, her surly, spur-galled-foot-licker. But was he her friend? She reached the door, her heart pounding. She was about to find out.

"Come inside," Neji said as soon as he opened the basement door that led to his bedroom.

Tenten walked into the house and followed Neji down a small, narrow hallway. At the end of the hallway was the door that opened into Neji's bedroom. Actually, it was more like an apartment, complete with a sitting area, a Ping-pong table, and a mini fridge at a corner.

"Is everything okay?" Neji asked anxiously. He was wearing his pajama and his hair looked like it had been through a tornado. "Is it your mom?" he added quietly.

Tenten flopped onto an old, half-stuffed beanbag chair. "She's fine. I mean, no, she's not fine. She hasn't been fine for a long, long time. But for some crazy reason I've been going around telling anyone who asks that she is. And now I cant do that anymore…" Tenten sighed deeply, sinking further into the giant beanbag. "Oh man…, I don't even know why I'm here…"

"Tenten…"

"I'm going to leave, this was a stupid idea," Tenten interrupted.

What was she thinking? She had woken Neji up in the middle of the night so that he could sit there and listen to her, his least favorite person in the world, moan and groan about her problems. This was ridiculous. Tenten pushed herself up off the beanbag and started towards the door.

However, Neji stood up at grabbed her hand. "Tenten, listen to me for one second."

"What?"

"I think you should stay for a while. I mean, you obviously came here for a reason. And now you're up, and I'm up…and well, we might as well talk."

Tenten sort of fell onto the sofa. Her legs just king of gave way. She didn't say anything at first. Tenten gazed around Neji's room, looking at his trophies, sports posters and CDs everywhere. A miniature basketball hoop was attached to one of the walls. It was all so typically male that she realized suddenly that this was the first time since sixth grade that she had been alone with a guy in his room. Of course since that guy was Neji, it didn't count. Her gaze fell on the swimming trophy he had won in fifth grade. She had been on the other end of the lane, cheering him to victory. After the meet, both of them had gone to celebrate.

"Everything used to be so simple…" Tenten said finally.

Neji sat down beside her. "Yeah, sometimes I wish I didn't have to grow up. I miss the time that I could fix any problem with a hot fudge sundae."

"Remember the time we ran away from home together?" Tenten asked.

Neji laughed. "I don't know how fat we thought we were going with two ham sandwiches, a package of oreo cookies and ten dollars."

"Hey, we made it to McDonalds. I think that was the best happy meal I ever had." Tenten pointed out.

"And then you mom showed up with a suitcase. She said she was going to come with us as long as we're running away." Neji added.

Tenten giggled.

"It actually worked. You were so worried that your dad was going to be lonely all by himself that you insisted we abandon our plan to move to Disneyland." Neji said.

"My mom was really something. Wasn't she?" Tenten sighed.

"She still is." Neji replied as he scooped up a basketball and tossed it in the direction of the hoop. It hit the rim, fell onto the floor and rolled in their direction.

"I don't know what we're going to do without her. I'm so scared, Neji. If I even think of the worst case scenario, I feel like I'm going to completely fall apart." Whispered Tenten.

"Its ok if you fall apart Tenten, you're entitled.

Tenten took the ball from Neji and threw it. It swished through the hoop. "Two points," she declared.

"Really, Tenten, you don't have to pretend that everything is okay. There are a lot of people around who would love a chance to lend you a shoulder."

"I have to be strong, I don't want my parents to know how terrified I am." Tenten paused and thought of her dad's expression earlier that day. "They need me to have a smile on my face, Neji. It's all they've got right now."

"It's at times like these that it's rough to be an only child. If you had a sister or brother, maybe you wouldn't be so compelled to keep a stiff upper lip, as they say." Commented Neji.

Tenten laughed softly. "You know what's weird? You're probably the closest thing I have to a sibling. Maybe that's why I'm here."

"We were sort of like a brother and a sister when we were little. We used to squabble like two kids stuck in the backseat of a car during a long road trip."

Tenten nodded. "I loved all that bickering when I was young. It made me feel…I don't know…safe somehow."

Neji threw the ball and it went through the hoop. "Two points, tied! We're still pretty fantastic in the bickering department."

"True," said Tenten as she took her turn in throwing the ball. It didn't land anywhere near the hoop this time. "But it feels different now."

"I guessed hormones got in the way. We hit puberty and everything changed." Replied Neji.

Tenten grinned. "You know, we shouldn't have gone on that stupid date. It was the beginning of the end of a beautiful friendship."

Tenten's heart skipped a beat. She couldn't believe she just mentioned that taboo subject. She must have been so caught up in their conversation that she slipped up.

"Man…that was a disaster. I was so nervous that my palm produced a liter of sweat that night."

"Same here," said Tenten.

"Really? You seemed so calm, cool and collected. I never would have guessed you were nervous."

"Are you kidding? That was like the biggest night of my life and it was the first time I ever wore lip gloss."

"Lip gloss? Wow I never knew!" Neji teased.

"Well, if you hadn't been so busy antagonizing the waiter, maybe you would have noticed that my lips were incredibly red and sensuous for a thirteen year old."

"I noticed…trust me, I noticed." Neji said.

Tenten shifted so that she was facing Neji. And she looked at him. He appeared to be the same boy she had built forts with in his backyard. But he was also someone totally different. He had broad shoulders and she could see the muscles in his chest lurking somewhere under his T-shirt. Funny she had never noticed what a square jaw he had…or the way his hair brushed his ears in just the right way.

Tenten became acutely aware of two facts. The first was that she hadn't felt this close to another person in ages – not since her mom had received her initial diagnosis and she had started to pull away from Sakura. Just being able to talk to someone made her feel like she could start cracking away at the wall she had built around her heart.

The second fact was even more mind blowing. Out of nowhere, she had become aware of Neji's presence in an entirely different way. She was conscious of his body, his arms, his strong hands resting lightly on the ball. And she couldn't take her eyes off his lips. They were full and red and exactly the kind of lips that girls dreamt of kissing. She felt thirteen all over again…only now. Now she was seventeen and kissing wasn't just something she had read about in books. She had done it and she could imagine what it would be like with Neji.

"Are you wearing lip gloss right now?" Neji asked, his voice so husky that it sent chills down Tenten's spine. He was staring into her eyes and her body felt like it was turning to liquid as she nodded.

"Um…a little, it's left over from this afternoon."

Neji reached out and brushed her hair away from her face. "It looks nice." A vein in his forehead throbbed as if it had a life of its own.

"Thanks…"Tenten whispered.

Neji leaned closer to her, and Tenten found herself responding to him like a magnet. She moved closer to him, her eyes falling again to his lips.

Time seemed to stand still and Tenten realized that at this moment, she wanted to kiss Hyuga Neji more than she ever could have dreamed possible.

All the blood in Neji's body had rushed to his head, and he felt like he was about to faint. At the same time,every one of his five senses was hyper aleart as he continued to stare into Tenten's eyes. His mouth was so close to her lips that he could practically taste them. He could detect the slight scent of strawberry from the shampoo Tenten used on her shiny dark hair. It was intoxicating.

He was about to kiss Tenten. For the first time ever, Neji was aware that this was something he had wanted to for a long, long time. He closedhis eyes and leaned even closer, closing the tiny amount of space that was still between them. But he didn't find her lips with his. There was an empty space where her mouth had been.

Neji popped open his eyes. Tentne was on the other side of the couch, as far away as she could get from him. She had jerked away at the last possible second. And she was still staring at him but now her eyes were flashing with anger.

"Tenten, what's the matter?"

She scowled. "I don't need your pity kiss Neji." She stood up and crossed her arms protectively over her chest. "I should never have come here."

"What are you talking about?" Neji yelled as loudly as he could without waking his parents up.

"I'm out of here." Tenten said as she spun around and strode towards the door without giving Neji a chance to say anything.

"Just wait…" Neji trailed.

But it was too late. Tenten had started running. By the time Neji reached the door, she had already fled. He had to let her go. He couldn't exactly chase a girl down the block in the middle of the night.

Instead, he ran back to his room and stood by the window, where he had a view of the street. He watched as Tenten sprinted down the block and slipped safely back into her house.

"What just happened?" Neji asked himself.

He was confused, frustrated, and annoyed. Tenten had wanted him to kiss her. He was sure of it. What was her deal? He had never met someone who ran so hot and cold. Neji bent over and reached for his basketball and threw it as hard as he could against the wall, trying to vent his pent up emotions.

Had Tenten intentionally come over to get him all riled up so that she could throw it back in his face? It didn't seem possible…Then again, two hours ago he wouldn't have thought it was possible that he would be woken up in the middle of the night by his sparring partner either.

"Nothing makes sense anymore…"Neji moaned, flopping onto his bed.

He felt terrible that Tenten's mom was sick but he also resented the way Tenten was treating him. Just because she was going through a traumatic time didn't mean that she could use him as an emotional punching bag. He was a human being with feelings! Not that Tenten had the power to hurt him. He didn't even like her. He didn't! The non-kiss had been…what?

A mistake. A moment of weakness. A severe error in judgement. He was glad Tenten had pulled away. He would have regretted the kiss the second that it ended, if not sooner. He should consider himself lucky that it never happened.

Neji reached out and flipped off the switch of the overhead light. Unfortunately, he was going to have to wake up in a few short hours. Tomorrow was going to be a complete wash. But it wasn't going to be anywhere near as miserable as prom night. If the way tonight had gone was any indication, the dance was going to be nothing short of a nightmare.

"Neji! Are you awake down there?" Mrs Hyuga's voice combined with the buzz of the alarm clock jolted him out of a deep sleep.

Neji turned over and banged his fist on the alarm clock. "I'm up!" he yelled back.

Groggily, he slid out of bed and headed directly for a hot shower. Had he been dreaming or did Tenten rally shown up at his door in the middle of the night? Then he noticed a pink ponytail holder lying on the floor next to the sofa. Oh yeah. She had been here. So it was all real after all. Her showing up. Their conversation. The kiss. The kiss that never happened, he amended to himself.

As he mulled over the events last night under a hot shower, he thought that maybe he over reacted when he had been so angry that she bolted without a word of explanation. If his mom were as sick as her mom was…he didn't even want to think about what he might do.

As he stepped out of the shower, he couldn't help but feel guilty. He had been the one who was wrong last night, not Tenten. She had been totally vulnerable, and she had trusted him. She had shared her fears with him. And he was sure that she hadn't told anyone else about her need to be strong on the outside no matter what happened.

"You're a jerk," he told himself as he wiped at his foggy reflection on the mirror.

Rule number one in the code of chivalry was not to take advantage of a girl when she was feeling vulnerable. He hadn't intended to take advantage Tenten but maybe it was wrong for him to kiss her under such circumstances.

True, she had seemed as ready for the kiss as he had been. But at the last second she must have come to her senses and remembered that she didn't even like him. He'll apologize, he decided. Tenten needed friends right now and he wanted to be in that category. He wanted to be there for Tenten…for old time's sake, if nothing else.

Neji spent most of his lunch period searching for Tenten so that he could give her a timely apology. Finally, ten minutes before the bell rang, he found her sitting at corner table in the library.

"Hey." Neji stood in front of her table and waited for her to look up.

"Neji, what are you doing here?" she asked sounding extremely suspicious.

So much for crying on my shoulder. "I…um…wanted to talk about last night." Neji explained. _Ok, go to the point, just tell her you're sorry_, he thought.

Tenten laughed. "Forget about last night."

"What?" Neji had been ready for anything. But laughter?

"Listen, Neji, last night I had a bad case of temporary insanity."

"You did." Neji wasn't sure if he was making a statement or posing a question. Tenten always had the effect of throwing him completely off balace.

"It was late, I couldn't sleep." She gave him a tight smile. "Consider it an insomia-provoked dementia."

"Well, whatever it was, I just wanted to let you know that I…"

"Save it," Tenten interrupted. "Whatever you're about to say is totally irrelevant. Because we're just going to pretend it never happened. End of story." Tenten raised her eyebrows and gave him a challenging stare.

So she wasn't looking for an apology. Okay. Fine. Neji was still going to give the friend thing one more shot. For her mom. For Tenten.

"End of story. I understand. But I wanted you to know that I'm here for you. That's all." Said Neji.

"Thank you." But Tenten's voice conveyed anything but gratitude. "I'll keep that in mind. Now do you mind? I have to get back to my homework."

_Nice_, Neji thought. He turned his back on Tenten and strode across the library. Their conversation certainly hadn't been worth giving up his lunch for. In fact, it was a complete waste of time.

From now on, he was going to stay as far away from Tenten as he could. That was obviously what she wanted – and that's what she was going to get. End of story.

* * *

**Author's Notes:** _Sorry for taking such a looong time to update… Hope you like this chapter. It's all Neji/Ten and Tenten's acting like a brat, poor Neji! So I'll dedicate the next chapter to Sasu/Saku since they are not in this chapter. Thanks so much to everyone who read and reviewed! Love ya guys!_


	6. Chapter 5

**Up All Night**

_Summary: AU. Characters are OOC. Sure, Neji's cute, but he's also obnoxious! So try telling that to Tenten's mom. She thinks that Neji is the perfect guy for Tenten. So when Neji surprised Tenten by asking her to the prom, she had to say yes for her sick mom whom she didn't want to let down, even if it meant spending the most romantic night of her life with him. Neji. The guy she can't stand. On the other hand, Sakura isn't interested in love. Her parents are divorced and Sakura is pretty down on couplehood. The last thing on her mind is jumping into a relationship, that is, until Sasuke comes along. Will these 2 girls have thier perfect prom night? Pairings: Neji/Tenten, Sasuke/Sakura & minor Shika/Ino._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto!_

_Rated: PG_

* * *

Chapter 5 

"Hey Sakura, you're skipping club again? Aren't you supposed to be the manager?" asked Tenten.

"I don't care, it's over anyway…" muttered Sakura as she slammed her locker shut.

"It will be fine if you explain it to him. He'll understand." Said Tenten.

"No…I was the one who wrote the letter to him in the first place. And I was the one who kissed another guy. He must think I'm a shallow girl."

"So you're going to let him misunderstand you like that?"

"I don't care anymore…" said Sakura tiredly.

"Sakura," another voice said all of a sudden.

Sakura looked up and to her surprise, she saw Jun.

"Are you free right now? I need to talk to you."

"I…um…"

"I'll catch you later Sakura." Said Tenten as she looked at Sakura in concern and left.

"Sorry about the manager position…" said Sakura, her head down.

"You don't have to come anymore."

"What?" Sakura jerked her head up.

"Because you didn't come for so many days, it bothers us too. We don't want a manager who isn't serious about her job." Replied Jun.

Sakura was too shocked to speak as she looked at Jun walking away from her. Walking away from her life forever. She sighed and started to head home. Dark clouds were hovering about her and it looked like it was about to start pouring. Sakura quickened her steps. All of a sudden, two men in suits walked up to her.

"Miss Haruno, please come with us. Mr Uchiha invites you to his house." One of them spoke as he took hold of Sakura's arms and pulled her towards a car.

"What? Why?" Sakura asked but to her annoyance, there was no reply.

Finally, after twenty minutes, a large house came into view.

"Wow…what a big, beautiful house…" Sakura said.

"Sakura darling! Welcome home!" Mr Uchiha said as he grabbed Sakura and pulled her into the house before Sakura could say anything.

"U..uncle…what's going on?"

"Dear Sakura, your mom went away to see you grandmother, so she asked me to take of you for a few days!" he said cheerily.

"Oh…ok. Thanks." Said Sakura unenthusiastically.

Mr Uchiha didn't seem to pick up her bad mood.

"My lovely daughter, I'm cooking your favorite chicken curry tonight! I heard from your mom that you loved it!"

"Er…Thanks?" said Sakura awkwardly.

"Well go make yourself comfortable while I cook!"

Sakura nodded and started to walk towards what she thought was the living room. When she turned into the room, she knocked into someone. Sakura looked up and frowned. _Damn, he's home already_…, she thought.

"Were you looking for me?"

"NO!" Sakura yelled.

"So what are you doing here?" asked Sasuke.

"My mom went to visit my grandmother and she left me in your dad's care."

"Hey kids, dinner's almost ready! Sakura dear, could you set the table for me please?"

"Sure," Sakura shouted back and she hurried over to the dining room with Sasuke close behind her.

_Jeez, just what I needed today…I just wanted to go home and hide under my blanket and cry. Why did mom have to go visiting today…_thought Sakura as she laid the plates on the table. She felt a pair of eyes boring straight at the back of her skull and she turned. Sasuke was staring at her and smiling. She turned around as soon as she met his eyes.

_What was that unguarded look just now? It's confusing me_…He only knows how to _bother and annoy me. A guy that's a year younger than I am who always does things according to his own desires. A bad boy who doesn't know the meaning of fear. Which is the real Sasuke?_ Sakura thought.

The next morning, Sakura woke up with a terrible headache. She hadn't slept well last night due to the fact that Jun hates her now. She looked around groggily and wondered where was she. And then, someone spoke to her.

"Good morning."

"Good morning," she replied.

Then she blinked her eyes and looked at the direction of the voice.

"AARRGG! I fell asleep on your bed! Where's uncle?" Sakura screamed.

"He's in his own room sleeping." Replied Sasuke.

_What the hell…what if something happened to me…how could uncle be so irresponsible_! Sakura thought.

"You were talking in your sleep." Said Sasuke.

"No way!"

"You said I love Sasuke."

"S…Stop joking! I did no such thing!" Sakura shrieked as she ran out of his room into the bathroom.

"No! No!" she yelled to her reflection in the mirror.

_We slept on the same bed yesterday. How can I give him such chances!_ Sakura thought in horror. _But the look I saw yesterday…that innocent look. I cant get it out of my mind…why?_

Later in school…

"Sakura! Those people told me that you came to school together with the principal and his son. You're not living with them already are you?" asked Tenten curiously.

"Tenten! Keep it down!" muttered Sakura as she glanced over at Jun.

"Today's volunteer, please go to the library and get us the world map," their teacher said.

"Oh, that's me. Talk to you later Tenten." Said Sakura and she got up from her seat and headed to the library.

"Oh my, they are living together already…it's dangerous!" whispered a girl beside Tenten.

"I heard that he even stole her first kiss." Whispered another student.

All of a sudden, Jun stood up and slammed his fist on his table and walked out of the classroom. Tenten looked on anxiously and hoped that everything was going to be okay. Sakura had enough problems already.

At the library…

_Even I know I've been hated, I still don't want Jun to know about Sasuke…_Sakura thought. She was engrossed in looking for the map that she didn't realize that Jun was standing next to her.

"Sakura…"

"Jun…is everything ok?"

"What should I do?"

"What?" Sakura asked confused.

"From a long time ago, when I knew the girl whom I like are destined to be together, do you know how happy I was? But…that girl kissed another man…"

_No way! He's saying the girl he likes…is me?_ Sakura thought.

"Sasuke was the one who grabbed me!" Sakura protested.

"I don't care about the truth! The fact is that both of you kissed right? I was angry, I was bothered. Tell me what should I do" Jun asked as he stepped menacingly towards her.

Back in the classroom…

"Where's Sakura?"

Tenten looked up from her geography book and came face to face with Sasuke.

"Erm…she's…"

"She's in the library. In the information room. And Jun's with her." Interrupted another girl.

"And that information room is a private room…I wonder what will they do…" said another.

"Hey…stop talking nonsense, She…" Before Tenten could finish her sentence, Sasuke was nowhere to be seen.

"Uh oh…" Tenten said as she stood up and left the classroom too ignoring the protest of her teacher.

Back in the library…

Jun walked towards a trembling Sakura and punched his fist straight at her. Sakura closed her eyes in terror but his fist never came into contact with her face. She opened one eye and saw that he had slammed his fist onto the wall and it was bleeding. Sakura was scared. She had never seen Mr Nice Guy Jun acting like this before. He should be a gentle person. The perfect guy. Why is he acting so differently now?

"You like me right?" his deep voice broke her thoughts.

"You…you're not the Jun I know! He wouldn't do something like that!" Sakura said,her voice trembling in fear.

"What is that supposed to mean? Don't say anything about me if you don't know me. And don't compare me to your fantasies!" he yelled.

"If you guys wanna do something like this, lock the door. Otherwise, you'll be interrupted."

"Sasuke!" cried Sakura.

"Sakura!" shouted Tenten as she, too, walked into the information room. "Are you okay? He…" she paused when she saw the three of them staring at each other.

Sasuke started to walk towards Sakura and Jun. He brushed past Jun without giving him a look.

"Sakura, I felt your lunch in you classroom. Dad made it."

Sakura just stared. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore and ran out of the room in tears.

"Sakura!" called Tenten as she chased after her.

After a minute or two, Tenten finally caught up with her.

"Sakura, don't cry! I'll think of something to get you and Jun together."

"No…it's not that. I actually felt relieved."

"Huh?"

"Jun's face was really scary that time and I was actually relieved to see Sasuke…I don't know…Jun was so different. It made me wonder why I liked him in the first place. At that time, I saw Sasuke's face and I my heart felt so relieved…"

"Sakura, don't tell me you're…"

"I don't know whom should I think of anymore!" cried Sakura as she ran off leaving Tenten with a confused expression.

_I guess I can't help her when I cant even help myself_, sighed Tenten.

Later at night…

"Sasuke, you're back!" said Mr Uchiha with his usual cheerful voice.

"Yeah…"

"What happened to Sakura? Mr Uchiha asked when he didn't see her beside Sasuke.

"What? She isn't home yet?"

"No…I thought she's coming home with you. She wouldn't be at her own house because her mom wont be back until tomorrow." Said Mr Uchiha worriedly.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

"I should go home…I'm so stupid…" muttered Sakura to herself as her tears kept falling.

_I want to disappear too_…she thought.

"Really? You're stupid?"

Sakura looked up from the swing she was sitting. _What is he doing here? _She thought as she wiped her tears off hurriedly.

"I was wondering who would be so stupid to sit here and cry all by herself. So it's our big sister."

"I'm not crying!"

"Why are you always crying?"

"I'm not!"

"Looks like you're crying to me. Is it because of me?" Sasuke asked seriously.

"No…it's my own problem…"

"And…what are you going to do about it?"

"I…"

"Don't think about it anymore. It's past."

Sakura looked into Sasuke's eyes. She thought of the other time when one of his friends said that they stuck with Sasuke not because he is the principal's son. It's because he really like him. Miraculously, her heart felt lighter than before.

"Come on, let's go home, I'm hungry." Sasuke said.

Sakura nodded as she hopped on the bicycle.

"Hey Sasuke, did you come out looking for me?"

"You must be kidding…You're so heavy…"

Sakura giggled. "Sorry!"

Next day in school…

"Jun, I need to talk to you…" said Sakura.

"Spit."

"I…I'm sorry. But I like Sasuke."

"You're so low class. It's ok, because I don't care." With that, he walked off.

"Sakura, why are you crying? You dumped him." Tenten asked in concern.

"Because…because Sasuke taught me…"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Oh look! It's Sakura! Long time no see," exclaimed Shikamaru.

"Yeah, where are you guys going?" Sakura asked Shikamaru and Sasuke.

"We're going to our biology class. Well, I'll just go ahead. Sasuke, catch me up later ok?" said Shikamaru.

"Is something wrong?" Sasuke asked Sakura.

"I…I just want to thank you."

"Why?"

"Uh…there are a lot of reasons…"

"Sorry made you fall for me, my dearest sister?"

"What? Who's falling for you? You wish!" stammered Sakura.

_Gosh, even thought that was what I said, it doesn't mean that its true…Me, falling for my future brother. That sounds kind of weird_…thought Sakura as she dashed away.

Unknown to her, another pair of blue eyes was, again, staring at her flashing in anger…

* * *

**Author's Notes:** _Sorry for the short chapter. I have so much school work that I can't breathe! Plus it's my birthday tomorrow! So I'm busy getting ready for my party. I'm getting a year older! Will update as soon as possible! Thanks for reading! And tell me if I went too fast or if I need improvement!_


	7. Chapter 6

**Up All Night**

_Summary: AU. Characters are OOC. Sure, Neji's cute, but he's also obnoxious! So try telling that to Tenten's mom. She thinks that Neji is the perfect guy for Tenten. So when Neji surprised Tenten by asking her to the prom, she had to say yes for her sick mom whom she didn't want to let down, even if it meant spending the most romantic night of her life with him. Neji. The guy she can't stand. On the other hand, Sakura isn't interested in love. Her parents are divorced and Sakura is pretty down on couplehood. The last thing on her mind is jumping into a relationship, that is, until Sasuke comes along. Will these 2 girls have thier perfect prom night? Pairings: Neji/Tenten, Sasuke/Sakura & minor Shika/Ino._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto!_

_Rated: PG_

* * *

Chapter 6  "Hey Sakura, why are there so many people gathered there?" asked Tenten on Monday morning. 

"Isn't that the bulletin board? I wonder what rumors are they spreading this time." Sakura said as she and Tenten went up to have a look.

"What is going on!" Sakura shrieked the moment she saw the notice.

Tenten looked over her shoulder and there in big bold letters were "Special Report! The principal is going to remarry. Uchiha has a new sister!" But that wasn't the only thing. Sakura and Sasuke's pictures were up along with their parents. Beside Sakura's picture were the words "We are sibling! Nice to meet you!"

Sakura stared at the notice in horror. Now the whole school knows that they are going to be siblings. _Even though it's true, how can the stupid school newspaper post a report like this,_ Sakura thought in anger.

"I'm going to complain!" yelled Sakura as she dashed off towards the school newsroom.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Excuse me, about this article…" started Sakura. "YOU! You're the one who wrote this!" accused Sakura as she pointed a finger at Ino.

Ino smirked. "Is there anything wrong with the article?"

"That's my family business! You shouldn't post it up like that!"

Ino took a stepped towards Sakura menacingly. "Because there's a need to. I wont allow you and Sasuke to start a relationship. I just want everyone in public to know that both of you are siblings, so now you cant date."

Sakura gulped and took a step back. _How did this person know of my true feelings_, Sakura thought.

"I would have never guessed both of you would become siblings. But this way, you can't do anything about it." Ino laughed.

_She's saying all these because she knows what I'm thinking_, Sakura thought nervously.

"Hey Ino, Sasuke's looking for you!" exclaimed another voice.

"Then I'll see you later big sister," chuckled Ino.

"What…" said Sakura.

_Wait, what's her relationship with Sasuke anyway_…she thought ash Ino left.

"Hey Shikamaru, erm…do you know what's Ino's relationship with Sasuke?" Sakura asked the boy who just entered the room.

"Ooh, Ino and Sasuke? They are childhood friends. Which includes me as well! Three of us know each other for a really long time now! Why do you ask?"

"Um…Nothing! Just curious…"

……………………………………………………………………………………………

"What is this all about?" Sasuke asked Ino.

"It is what you see." Said Ino.

"I'm asking you what's the reason for doing this."

"Sasuke, don't you know that you're already very popular? If this continues, your fans are just going to bully Sakura, wont they? This is for Sakura's own good."

"…"

"Sasuke…" Ino pouted.

"Sakura, what are you doing hiding down there?" asked Sasuke.

Sakura sqeaked and got out of her hiding place. "Um…I…I just…"

"We were just passing by!" said Shikamaru cheerily and he ran towards Sasuke and pounced on him. "We are the best of friends, aren't we Sasuke?"

"You pig head! Stop sticking to Sasuke like that!" Ino yelled at Shikamaru.

"Ino, you're so mean! Every since middle school, you've been mean to me!" wailed Shikamaru.

"Whatever…"muttered Ino.

"Hey Sakura, get me a cup of coffee." Said Sasuke.

"I…um…have a stomache…"

"Don't pretend you didn't hear me!" said an irritated Sasuke.

_What am I supposed to do? My current situation is that I cant confess to the person I like…A dark future_, sighed Sakura.

………………………………………………………………………………………….

"What should I do Tenten? Tell me…you'll help me wont you?" asked Sakura during their lunch period on Tuesday.

"Yeah…of course I will."

Unfortunately, Tenten knew she wasn't going to be all that much help. Her mind as usual had been on her mom.

"Should I just give up or what?" asked Sakura.

Tenten nodded absently. She wanted to concentrate on Sakura's problem. She really did. But while she was focused on public humilation, Tenten was worried about her own private humilation. She couldn't stop thinking about the other night. She had managed to act nonchalant when Neji had found her hiding in the library, but inside she had been a mess. When she woke up this morning, she had hoped that the whole scene at Neji's had been some kind of surreal nightmare.

But then it was real. She had made a total fool out of herself, and there was nothing she could do about it. _What was I thinking?_ Tenten wondered for around the millionth time today. The more times she went over that night in her head, the more embarrassed she was. It made her looked desperate! It was pathetic! She shouldn't have let herself get to a place where she would do something so pitiable. She should have called Sakura instead or written in her non-existent diary, or called the Psychic Hotline or even talked to herself in the mirror.

I'm never going to blubber on Neji's shoulder again, Tenten vowed to herself. She would have to deal with him at the prom on Saturday night, but after that, she was going to steer clear of him as much as she possibly could. At least she had managed to do one right thing that night – that was to stop the kiss from happening. That would have been nothing short of total personal ruin. She knew there was no way he really wanted to kiss her. He was probably just hoping that a kiss would get her to stop droning on and on about her messed up life.

True, his eyes had been sort of smoldering when he had been leaning so close…but that had most likely been due to fatigue, not desire. She wasn't Neji's type, and she would never be. Not that she wanted to be. She found him just as unattractive as he found her.

"Tenten, hello, are you listening?" Sakura asked, waving her hand in front of her face.

Tenten blinked. Oops. She not only didn't know what she had just said. She had absolutely no idea what Sakura had been talking about for the last five minutes.

"Uh…yes, I was listening." She lied. "I think you should go talk to him." She added.

Sakura raised her eyebrows. "Tenten, I was asking if you wanted more fries. I was thinking of sharing another order."

Oops again. "Sorry Sakura, I guess I'm sort of preoccupied."

"What were you thinking about? Was it your mom?" Sakura asked, her large emerald eyes filled with concern.

"Nope, not my mom."

"What then?"

Tenten bit the inside of her lip, pondering the question. She knew she could trust Sakura with anything. She wouldn't go babbling to anyone about the scene with Neji. And she would probably come up with all sorts of reasons about why she shouldn't feel humiliated. But what was the point of spilling her guts? The night was over and she just wanted to put it behind. Besides, the kiss never happened and she didn't want to give Sakura the wrong idea about Neji and her.

"I know! Were you thinking of your crush Matt?"

"Well…" Tenten let her voice trail off, allowing her best friend to interpret her response any way she wanted to.

"Were you dreaming about kissing him?" Sakura giggled. "Are you in love?"

"No comment." Tenten said.

"I wonder what it would be like to kiss Sasuke, I mean, yeah we kissed before but that was the time I didn't like him…"

As Sakura launched back into the topic of her new brother, Tenten heaved a small sigh of relief. She loved Sakura but there was some things better left unsaid. Anyway, as soon as Neji and her got this prom date behind them, she could quit worrying about him. And as far as she was concerned, that couldn't be soon enough.

* * *

**Author's Notes:** _Hey guys, I'm sorry for not updating for such a loooong time! Blame it on my school! I have so many assignments and tests coming up… I'll try to update as soon as possible! The next few chapters would probably be mostly Sasu/Saku. Hope you guys don't get bored of my story! Till then!_


	8. Chapter 7

**Up All Night**

_Summary: AU. Characters are OOC. Sure, Neji's cute, but he's also obnoxious! So try telling that to Tenten's mom. She thinks that Neji is the perfect guy for Tenten. So when Neji surprised Tenten by asking her to the prom, she had to say yes for her sick mom whom she didn't want to let down, even if it meant spending the most romantic night of her life with him. Neji. The guy she can't stand. On the other hand, Sakura isn't interested in love. Her parents are divorced and Sakura is pretty down on couplehood. The last thing on her mind is jumping into a relationship, that is, until Sasuke comes along. Will these 2 girls have thier perfect prom night? Pairings: Neji/Tenten, Sasuke/Sakura & minor Shika/Ino._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto!_

_Rated: PG_

* * *

Chapter 7

"Hey freak, can I talk to you for a moment?" Ino asked on a Wednesday afternoon.

Sakura frowned. "I know what you're going to say. But my feelings towards Sasuke wouldn't change, just because of you."

To her surprise, Ino laughed. "You're so funny. Even if your feelings towards Sasuke changed, it's still the same. Didn't I tell you before? You're just a toy to him. He'll never like a girl like you."

"W…why are you saying this?"

"Don't you know? Sasuke has always been on my side. He will eventually choose me," Ino replied haughtily.

_What is she talking about? He doesn't even look at her in the first place,_ Sakura thought.

"Hey, that girl with the long blonde hair, come over here." A girl interrupted.

Sakura turned to the direction of the voice and saw a group of third years staring menacingly at Ino. _What's going on, _she thought.

To her horror, the girls started to walk towards them, pushed Sakura to the side, and started slapping and hitting Ino.

"Hey! Stop! What's going on?" yelled Sakura.

"Its none of your business. You're not the girl we want, so stay out of this!" said one of the girls as she shoved Sakura roughly.

"It hurts! Let me go!" screamed Ino.

Sakura was stunned. What was she going to do? She didn't have the strength to overpower those girls. They were strong! She had to find someone! Sakura hurriedly took off to the guy's locker rooms and shouted for help.

"Sakura, what's wrong?" Sasuke asked when he saw her dashing into the locker room.

"Ino…Ino…" Sakura puffed as she tried to catch her breadth.

"What's wrong with Ino?" Shikamaru and Sasuke asked anxiously.

"She…she's being beaten up by some third years…at the 3rd level foyer…she…"

Before she finished her sentence, the guys dashed past her and hurried to the scene with Sakura trailing behind.

"What are you guys doing?" shouted Sasuke as he approached the girls. "Stop it!"

"Ino!" cried Shikamaru.

However the girls didn't stop. Enraged, Sasuke stormed towards them and pulled them off Ino roughly.

"If you guys try this again, I'll kill you. Get it?" yelled Sasuke angrily.

"Ok…ok," said the girls and they hurried off in fear.

"Ino, are you ok?" Sasuke asked gently as he helped her up.

As Sakura stood watching this scene, she couldn't help but think about what Ino had told her before. Sasuke had always been by her side and he will eventually choose Ino…

"Sasuke, you came to save me!" Ino cried happily as she lunged herself at him.

"Are you stupid? That's what you get for always offending people with your attitude." Said Sasuke.

"I was so scared…" cried Ino.

"If you understand, then don't do it again."

Sasuke…this was the first time Sakura had seen him so angry. His expression when he scolded the girls, it was so scary.

"I'll bring her to the infirmary, she twisted her ankle." Sasuke told Shikamaru and Sakura.

"Sasuke," started Sakura.

Sasuke turned back and looked at her. "She's going to be okay. You guys go back first."

As they walked away from Sakura, Ino turned and gave Sakura a smirk.

_Because of Ino, Sasuke changed into a different person…why?_ Sakura thought miserably.

At the infirmary…

"Thank God it's not that bad. Just put an ice pack and you're ready to go. You can bandage it yourself." Said Sasuke.

"You always become more gentle when you're facing an injured person, " said Ino.

"…"

"This takes me back to our middle school days. I always make you worry, didn't I? You kept helping me…"

Back at the foyer…

"Ino was always bullied back then," Shikamaru told Sakura.

"You're kidding!"

"Yeah, during middle school, she was always bullied by the girls in her class. Because she was never good at socializing, and with that high esteem attitude of hers, she offended a lot of people around her."

"That's bad…" whispered Sakura.

"Yeah, it is…But Sasuke always risks her life to save her. That's why Ino likes him so much. He is like her prince charming. Who wouldn't like him…Even me myself, as a guy, I like Sasuke very much. He's always so strong. Sometimes I wish I could be more like him…"

"Shikamaru…don't tell me that you…your feelings towards Ino are…"

Shikamaru laughed. "Erm…hehe…I mean if Ino is happy, then I am too."

"Shikamaru…"

"I gotta go, I'll catch you later. Bye Sakura!" said Shikamaru cheerily.

Later that night in Sakura's house…

Hmm, mom's not back yet…Wonder if she's working late again tonight, Sakura thought as she tasted the soup she just cooked.

Her thoughts finally wandered to Sasuke and Ino. What happened later on? Did he take Ino home?

"Are you cooking Udon noodle soup? Just don't put any onions in there, I hate it." interrupted a voice too familiar to Saukra.

She choked on the soup and turned around.

"What are you doing here?" she exclaimed.

"Dad's at work again, so I'm here for dinner."

"Please ring the doorbell the next time you come in! You could have frightened me to death!" said Sakura in annoyance.

"Whatever. I'm going to watch tv first. You can make me a cup of coffee first." Said Sasuke.

"What! This is not your home!"

But Sasuke ignored her.

Why does he act like nothing happened? Does he think I'm a maid…Does he know how I'm feeling! Sakura thought. Isnt he getting a little too comfortable too! Sakura fumed as she saw him relaxing on the couch.

"Here's your coffee." She slammed the coffee on the table. "Um…how's Ino?"

"She's fine. Just a few scratches and a twisted ankle. Nothing much."

"Is…is it true that Ino was always bullied during middle school? Shikamaru told me that you always risk everything to protect her…"

"Every time I look at Ino, I would get frustrated. Because she would always boast and keep her distance from everyone else, never thinking of accepting anyone. I've always felt that looking at her, I can see myself from a long time ago. It annoys me." Said Sasuke.

_I didn't know Sasuke was like that too before…I really don't know anything about Sasuke, _Sakura thought sadly and she lowered her head.

"Why Sakura? Are you jealous?"

Sakura jerked her head up. "What!" she exclaimed in surprise. "Jealous? You wish!"

"Really?" Sasuke teased as he leaned close towards her until his face was just right in front of her.

Sakura could feel herself redden and without thinking, she just used whatever she was holding to hit Sasuke's head away.

"Ouch! That was a friggin' iron tray! That hurts!" yelled Sasuke.

"Idiot!" shouted Sakura and she ran out of the living room.

"Hey wait! Where are you going? How dare you hit me on my head and then call me idiot!"

"I'm back! Hey Sakura, what are you yelling about? Is that Sasuke? Is he here for dinner?" asked her mom.

"I'm not taking dinner tonight!" said Sakura and she locked herself in her room.

"Argghh!" Sakura threw herself onto her bed and screamed into her pillow.

_Why am I so agitated? It's always me with that unsettling heart every time he plays around with me…my unsettled feelings_… thought Sakura.

Next morning in school…

"Tenten, What should I do?" Sakura asked. However Tenten herself had her own problems and was in her own world.

"So did you accept her money?" a girl on the other side of Sakura's locker asked.

"How much did Ino give you?" another girl asked.

"$50. Isn't that easy money?" Giggled another girl.

"Don't you think Ino is a little weird? She actually asked us to bully her."

"How pathetic. But who cares? As long as I can get money, I'll do anything,"

Sakura froze when she heard their conversation. As the girls started to walk out of the locker room, Sakura grabbed one of them by their arms.

"What are you guys talking about?"

"Its whatever you heard, now let go of me, you freak!"

"Sakura, are you okay?" Tenten asked.

"Yeah, I got something to do, I'll see you later okay?" said Sakura.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"What do you want by calling me here?" asked Ino. "My ankle still hurts you know?"

"This is part of you scheme right?"

Ino smirked. "Oh well, you found out?"

"Why did you do it? Why are you doing things that hurt yourself? Sasuke and Shikamaru were really worried about you!"

Ino laughed again. "I would do anything. I don't care what happens to my body. I would do anything to get Sasuke to pay attention to me."

"That's awful! You're just taking advantage of Sasuke's kindness." Yelled Sakura.

"Why are you angry? You have no right to tell me what to do." Said Ino calmly. "Or are you just jealous of me because you know the one Sasuke likes isn't you, that's why you're scared."

"What are you talking about…"

"How amusing. That expression on your face when Sasuke brought me to the infirmary. You didn't know that was all planned and you rushed to get Sasuke's help, then being cast aside in the end with the expression of a rejected puppy. How humiliating! It makes me want to lau…"

Before Ino could finish, Sakura's hands went down on her, giving her a big slap.

"What are you guys doing?" someone else interrupted.

"Sasuke…" muttered Sakura.

"Ino! What happened to you? Are you okay?" yelled Shikamaru as he rushed towards her.

"I don't know…Sakura suddenly slapped me…" Ino cried.

"Sakura! What were you thinking? What you did was unforgivable! Ino didn't do anything to you!" shouted Shikamaru.

"Sakura, is that true? Ino is still injured you know?" Sasuke asked.

Sakura just stood there staring at the ground.

"Sasuke…Please don't be mad at me" whined Ino as she threw herself into his chest.

"Sasuke, why are you helping her? The things that she did…If you keep helping her, she'll only get worse!" shouted Sakura with tears in her eyes.

"Are you finished Sakura? What's wrong with you Sakura? If you wanna say something, just say it. I don't even know what you're thinking." Said Sasuke.

Sakura raised her hands to support her forehead. _What…I cant take it anymore,I had enough,_ she thought angrily.

"You're always so composed, always teasing other people, seeing me so flustered must be and entertainment for you right? I am not your toy! I have decided I will not let you affect me any longer!" screamed Sakura.

Sasuke just looked at her with no expression. "Fine. Then you wont have anything to worry about. I wont bother you anymore."

"Fine!" said Sakura and she ran out of the room in tears.

"Sasuke, I'll always be by your side," Ino spoke up.

To her surprise, Sasuke balled his hands into a fist and thrust it onto one of the lockers, making Ino jump.

"Sasuke, I'll do anything for you. I don't want anything else except you!" said Ino ask she went forward and hugged him from behind.

However, Sasuke turned and brushed her aside.

"Ino, Stop it. If you continue like this, you're not going to get anywhere. If you want anything more than friendship from me, then I cant help you."

"But I like you so much! I can do anything for you!" pleaded Ino.

"But I don't want anything from you."

"Why? Why her? What do you want from her? What do you think Sakura can do for you?" shouted Ino in frustration. "Sasuke…"

"Shut up…So what did you achieve by making me angry?" Sasuke asked.

Ino just whimpered like a helpless puppy.

"Sasuke, you're too harsh, Ino…"

"Stop it Shikamaru, I don't want hear anything anymore." Said Sasuke and he left Ino crumpled onto the ground, weeping softly.

"Ino…are you okay?"

"Its her fault! Its her fault that he doesn't care about me anymore!" sobbed Ino.

Shikamaru took Ino's hands into his own. "Ino, I'll think of something. I wont forgive anyone who is causing you misery. Please don't cry Ino. I…I will do anything to make you smile…tell me, who's standing in your way of happiness?"

"It's her! Haruno Sakura! She said I was cruel! She said I was wrong! I didn't do anything wrong! I just like Sasuke!"

"Will you be happy if Sakura was gone?" Shikamaru asked seriously.

………………………………………………………………………………………..

Next day in school…

_I wont forgive anyone who is causing you misery…I'll do anything to make you smile…_ Ino couldn't stop thinking about Shikamaru's words yesterday. What was he going to do? All of a sudden, a sick thought struck her. _No way…he doesn't have that much courage to do that does he, _she thought anxiously

Meanwhile, on the other hand…

"Sakura, I need to speak to you."

"Shikamaru? Cant we talk inside? It's pouring out here and I'm cold."

"No…We'll settle it once and for all here."

"What are you talking about? Asked a confused Sakura. Shikamaru was usually cheery but today he was different. He looked so serious that it freaked Sakura out.

"Shikamaru, what's wrong? You're going to catch a cold…"

Shikamaru just stood there shivering in the cold.

"What's wrong?" Sakura asked again in concern.

"I have to make you disappear, Sakura. If this continues, it'll be too cruel for Ino. I have to do something. She likes Sasuke very much. She's unable to deliver her feelings to Sasuke because of you. If you were to disappear, there would not be any more problems!"

Back to Ino's side…

Ino was still hesitating what to do. She watched Sasuke playing his basketball and finally decided she had to do something. She ran up towards him when he was about to shoot the ball.

"Ino! What the hell are you doing? That's dangerous!" Sasuke yelled as they both crashed onto the floor.

"Sasuke, hurry, you have to go to Sakura. Because Shikamaru might…Its all because of me!" Ino cried.

Back to Sakura and Shikamaru…

"Shikamaru, you wouldn't do that. I know you wont…" said Sakura calmly as he approached her cautiously with a rod.

"Shut up Sakura! I have to do it! I wont let Ino suffer anymore!"

**

* * *

Author's Notes**: _Happy Easter you guys! Hope you like this chapter! Please remember to leave me a review! Thanks! In the next chapter, love would be confessed and we get to see a couple emerge! Till then!_


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